Too Smart for His Own Good? Jeff Burton, on why his team trails the others in Jack Roush's stable.(Racing)

Byline: AL PEARCE

Spend time with Jeff Burton and you get the unmistakable impression that he's smarter, more insightful and more analytical than most racers. Ask about almost anything-racing, the weather, Duke basketball, politics, movies or music-and settle in for a delightfully enlightening dissertation. Eventually, he cuts to the chase and you're better for having listened.

All of which makes this so hard to understand: How did Burton and his No. 99 Ford team go from one of NASCAR's best two years ago to virtual also-run status this year? They won 15 races and were ranked top-five every year between '97 and '00, but won only once and were 10th in points last year.

This year? Forgetaboutit! Even with a solid fourth-place in the Pop Secret 400 at Rockingham, the Roush team is mired 12th in points. With only Phoenix and Homestead remaining, it's the only top-15 team without a pole or a victory. By contrast, Roush Racing teammates Mark Martin, Kurt Busch and Matt Kenseth have combined for one pole and eight wins, and are second, fifth and eighth in points.

Burton is brutally candid about why his is the least-productive team at Roush Racing. His long version uses spool upon spool of recording tape and almost a full notebook. It addresses personnel matters, chassis design, aerodynamic concerns, team chemistry, common templates, free will, attitude and why he didn't attend college.

The short version comes down to this: Burton and former crew chief Frankie Stoddard made some choices about cars and chassis that, in hindsight, weren't very good. They went their own way, not always following what their Roush Racing teammates were doing. In the end, Burton admits, it probably wasn't the best thing they could have done.

In September, shortly after a string of nine poor runs in 11 races, Stoddard was released. Paul Andrews, the '92 Cup-winning crew chief with the late Alan Kulwicki, came aboard after starting the year with Steve Park at DEI. After digging themselves into quite a hole, Burton, Andrews and team owner Jack Roush are working like crazy to get out.