The eighth race of the Chase is over, and that means it's time for Power Rankings! But we're doing things a little differently now that we're in the postseason. It's all-Chasers, all the time. Good job, good effort for those of you that didn't make it, but we've got bigger fish to focus on. We'll be judging who's running well, considering not just finishing position but quality of run, expected potential, and general gut feelings. As always, we hate your guy and are biased against him. Now, enjoy.

1. Jimmie Johnson. Relentless. You want a statement? Winning two straight races is it. This is a thoroughly impressive Chase from Johnson, who's got the inside line on his sixth championship. Indeed, in almost any other year, it'd be a cakewalk. Except ... Last week: 1.

2. Brad Keselowski. Seven points down after two Johnson victories? That's got to count as success for @Kes. The most important race of his life is coming up this weekend in Phoenix; if he can stay

Several athletes have made the jump to politics, including Jack Kemp (NFL, vice-presidential candidate in 1996), Jim Bunning (baseball, U.S. senator) and Bill Bradley (NBA, U.S. senator). More recently, Kevin Johnson (formerly of the Phoenix Suns) and Heath Shuler (formerly of the Washington Redskins) have made the leap into the political arena.

[Election coverage: Get updates from Yahoo! News' Control Room]

On this election day, we pause to consider which present-day and former athletes have the brightest potential future in politics. And we're playing this straight; as much fun as it would be to see Charles Barkley carry through on his promise to become governor of Alabama, we don't see it happening. Here are 10 athletes who we believe could end up on a ballot one day.

Shane Battier: Perhaps the smartest player in the NBA, and no, that's not damning with faint praise. He makes everyone around him better, which is exactly what you want out of a president, and his Duke background

ATLANTA – Late in the first half of Sunday night's game against the Dallas Cowboys, with his team down a field goal and buried in its own territory, Atlanta's Julio Jones looked around the huddle as his teammates centered themselves during a timeout. He stared each one of them in the eye as he preached a message of motivation: Don't get down. Don't get burned. Play smart. Score.

As the timeout wound down and the Georgia Dome crowd around them thundered, fellow wide receiver Harry Douglas clapped Jones on the shoulder. "Man," he said, "you have grown up a lot."

Three plays and thirty-five yards later, Atlanta's Matt Bryant closed out the half with a field goal, and Atlanta would never again trail Dallas in its 19-13 victory.

Matt Ryan throws under pressure from Cowboys NT Jay Ratliff during the first half. (AP)There's much to admire about this Falcons team, from the thundering how-do-they-stay-upright running game of Michael Turner and Jacquizz Rodgers to the ascendant quarterback play of Matt Ryan. But if the Falcons are going to break their longstanding

You know these guys. (Getty Images)ATLANTA — "Is there water in my beard?"

James Harden fluffed his beard, the shorthand symbol of his identity, as he prepared to speak to a collection of media that reached legitimate throng status. The beard is the easy signifier, a Halloween prop come to life. You see a guy rocking a beard the size of a cafeteria tray, you figure he's a clown, a throwback to Dennis Rodman and other stars whose flash overwhelmed their substance.

And then he takes the court, and you start to rethink your opinion. Harden, in the first games of his fourth year, is on the very edge of superstar status, and he's looking like he's ready to assume the role.

This time last year, Harden was a role player on an ascending Oklahoma City team. But a breakout playoff performance, a Sixth Man award and an Olympic gold medal (plus a little notoriety at the elbow of Metta World Peace) and Harden solidified his credentials enough that the Thunder decided he'd be better off as trade asset than employee. So Harden packed his bags and his beard and journeyed about 500 miles down Interstate 45.

[Fantasy Basketball '12: Play the official game of NBA.com]

Harden thus gave Houston its second straight meteor hit, following the Rockets' summer signing of instant phenom Jeremy Lin. And with Harden and Lin, the Rockets now have — hey, why not call it like it is? — the finest backcourt in the NBA.

A cross stands over a destroyed neighborhood in Tuscaloosa. (Getty Images)TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Today, the corner of 15th Street and McFarland looks like any other busy intersection just off any other highway in the South. Gas stations, hotels with permanent "Roll Tide" cheers on their marquees, fast-food joints – they're all here, right as they should be.

But if you look closer, you can see gaps and fields where you wouldn't expect gaps and fields to be. The trees along Forest Lake are stripped bare of all but the very thickest branches. A chain-link fence surrounds the remains of an old building – its exposed wiring and insulation like a still-open wound. On a now-shuttered salon, a spray-painted X, denoting search-and-rescue efforts, reminds you of a disaster still very much present in this town the University of Alabama calls home.

"I met someone last month on campus and was explaining how to get somewhere," said Kristen Bolden, a student at Alabama. "I said, 'Oh, you turn where Hobby Lobby used to be.' He had no idea what I was talking about. I

Tim Tebow and Camilla Belle. (via TMZ)Fair warning: This post is SO not about football. If you continue past this point, you are entering a football-free zone, and you will be on your own. You've been warned.

Big news from the celebrity circuit, as TMZ is reporting that Tim Tebow, the most famous theoretical quarterback in the world, now has a girlfriend.

We will note in the strongest possible terms that this is UNCONFIRMED, for those of you concerned with such things. But this, according to TMZ, is the deal: "Tim and Camilla Belle showed up at Latitude 30 in Jacksonville, Florida Tuesday night, where they bowled and partied ... People who were at Latitude 30 last night tell us Tim and Camilla were overly affectionate throughout the evening, holding hands and touching."

[Related: Why Tim Tebow and the Jacksonville Jaguars need each other]

Well. There you go. Tebow has been linked in tabloid pages with everyone from Taylor Swift to Lolo Jones. But this is the first time the tabloids are willing to say that Tebow has himself

(Getty Images)Imagine for a second that you're a fervent Tim Tebow supporter. In addition to sporting some fancy jorts, you probably love Tebow's drive, his intensity, his will to win, his passion, his ability to inspire. In other words, you love his intangibles.

Tebow remains a fascinating story precisely because of all those intangibles. And while New York City loves the idea of intangibles — Derek Jeter will never go without a date because of his — you've got to back up those intangibles with, you know, tangibles. Tebow hasn't, and it doesn't look like he will in the current Jets offense anytime soon.

So, unlikely as the idea may be, why not ship him off to somewhere that his intangibles would be not just a facet of his character, but the essential element? Why not send him to the one place on earth where fans will embrace his flaws rather than make excuses for them?

Tim Tebow to Jacksonville. It'll never make more sense than it does right now.

[Related: Tim Tebow's celebrity girlfriend]

From

We have absolutely no idea what's going on here. (Getty Images)
The seventh race of the Chase is over, and that means it's time for Power Rankings! But we're doing things a little differently now that we're in the postseason. It's all-Chasers, all the time. Good job, good effort for those of you that didn't make it, but we've got bigger fish to focus on. We'll be judging who's running well, considering not just finishing position but quality of run, expected potential, and general gut feelings. As always, we hate your guy and are biased against him. Now, enjoy.

1. Jimmie Johnson. Relentless. That's the way Johnson has been all season, and this weekend it finally paid off. Johnson was expected to run well at Martinsville, and he did exactly that, winning both the pole and the checkered flag. How many grandfather clocks does one man need? Last week: 1.

2. Brad Keselowski. It's tough to say that a sixth-place finish is a victory, but that must have been what it felt like for Keselowski, starting 32nd and facing Johnson and Denny