I totally understand the desire to want to go for it all, put it all on the line and go for the win. I also fully understand that sometimes that desire can blow up in your face.

Jeff Gordon said before the Talladega race that he didn't want to be leading the race when the white flag came out .. rather he wanted to be in 2nd. The theory is, he wanted to be the guy to make the move to win the race on the last lap, not be the chump who loses the race on the last lap. And things were shaping up just a Jeff wanted as the laps clicked away.

However, Jeff made his move one lap too early. With roughly two laps to go, Jeff jumped out from behind Kyle Busch trying to make his move on the outside. Unfortunately, he had little to no help. Then JP Montoya closed the door before Jeff could get back into line. Then he got freight trained back into the pack where was caught up in the white-flag-lap wreck, finishing 19th.

Maybe if he would have stuck to his plan, he would have pulled off the win. But when you look at "Big Picture" racing, which is the new catch phrase in NASCAR, Gordon would have been better served to stay in line and finish second.

Now he's dropped to 14th, 11 points out of 12th place, and the clock is ticking. We're nearing the midway mark of the regular race season and dropping much further could prove fatal for the #24 crew.

- Mr Pressbox