Love Johnson or hate him, he's able to quiet his critics

It's not like it's all of a sudden, but you just got to wonder. Is it something in some water supplies?

Do people hate the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship format so badly that they would hate the very people who excel in a period in which the Chase just happens to be in effect?

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It seems that's the case, and it's giving me a mild case of indigestion -- or a craving for whatever these people are sampling. Not.

The heat's been coming down on Jimmie Johnson, so you Johnson haters, knock it off, already. If I were you -- and I'm not volunteering -- I'd appreciate this period in the sport for what it is: A chance to watch one of the best, ever, just handle everything that's been thrown at him.

Am I a Johnson fan? Uh, yeah. In my book, a guy who likes to hit the golf ball, drive a golf cart around on two wheels and drink a few beers is off to a pretty good start.

If he gets the order mixed up a little bit, that's called the human condition and, from what I've gathered from a lot of fan (and hate) mail, is just the thing people crave rather than another crate of vanilla.

And still the barbs fly: "He's a stroker," "He's favored by the rules," "He can't drive" or "He has a bad attitude." Puh-lease.

Over the last few weeks, a pretty strong statistical case has already been made for how consistently good Johnson has been. But NASCAR racing -- particularly of the Sprint Cup variety -- is nothing if not one of the most provincial sports going.

That's gotta be it. A caution fell and your guy got screwed (this time), so it's a conspiracy, a phantom caution or a gimme.

Gimme a break. Apparently you've never carried a NASCAR radio or scanned the control channel. Cats behind the wheel are wailing for cautions all the time, particularly when it suits their fortunes.

The track's eyeballed, a number of NASCAR observers weigh in and a caution is either thrown or it isn't. Don't waste your time doing the research, because I'm pretty sure it would prove the benefit goes around and comes around on that one.

Anyone who would say Johnson strokes or can't drive hasn't watched many Chase races for the last three or four years. Considering everyone in the field is trying to win -- including his teammates, who are some of the best in the sport -- if Johnson was doing anything but going all-out, he wouldn't put up the numbers he has.

And you don't like his attitude? Are you telling me you'd like a guy who was happy to finish eighth or ninth, after he battled an evil car every lap around one of the most daunting venues NASCAR visits? Revisit the vanilla crate comment.

And appreciate moves like the save Johnson made coming off Turn 4 at Lowe's early in the race, in which his car wobbled a couple times and, when he tried to put the power down to get down the straightaway, really stepped-out. Then try to come back and make the "no driving SOB" comments. Betcha can't. (Continued)