DOVER, Del. (AP) – All Martin Truex Jr. needs to do to gauge the enormous impact Dale Earnhardt Jr. has on NASCAR is take a peek at the packed stands every race day.

The fans dress in Junior’s colors, bring their No. 88 signs and roar when his name is mentioned in race introductions. Earnhardt’s firm grip as NASCAR’s most popular driver hasn’t waned even as the wins have dried up. Somehow, the lack of trips to Victory Lane hasn’t affected how “Junior Nation” feels about the son of the legendary former Cup champion.

That’s what makes Earnhardt’s career vastly unique from any other driver in the Cup garage.

“There are more people involved in this sport because of Dale Jr. than because of me or anybody else out there,” Truex said. “I think that’s what makes it different, you know?”

Earnhardt knows. He’s also well aware his devoted fan base was quick to blame crew chief Tony Eury Jr. for any of the No. 88’s troubles, and wanted Earnhardt’s cousin booted from the Hendrick Motorsports team.

Well, they got their scapegoat, and now there’s only one person to take the heat for Earnhardt’s slumping season.

Earnhardt.

“I feel like they’ll always be pressure on me I guess,” Earnhardt said. “I’m all right with that. I’ve always had pressure on me and I don’t mind.”

Earnhardt has always had pressure, and maybe unrealistic expectations, simply because his dad was “The Intimidator.” Signing with the powerhouse Hendrick team for the start of last season only heightened the scrutiny Earnhardt came under.

He made the Chase for the championship last season, only to finish a disappointing 12th in the standings after a late fade knocked him out of title contention. This season, Earnhardt is 19th in points and coming off a season-worst 40th-place finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

It’s become natural to wonder if Earnhardt can ever reach the lofty expectations set at Hendrick, and what it will take to rebuild his sagging confidence.

“I would be lying if I said I didn’t lose confidence at times,” Earnhardt said. “You definitely lose confidence when you don’t run good. You’re only human, so you’re definitely going to question some of your abilities when you’re not getting it done.”

It can’t be easy to trust his own skill with teammates Jeff Gordon (first), Jimmie Johnson (fourth) and Mark Martin (12th) running well ahead of him in the points standings, even with what they all claim is essentially the same equipment.

“When you put yourself at Hendrick Motorsports, you’re in the best equipment and you should win races,” Earnhardt said. “If you don’t, that really sort of makes for a hard argument that you had any business being there in the first place.”

With Eury booted from his crew chief job, team manager Brian Whitesell will call the shots this weekend at Dover. Next week, Lance McGrew will take over on an interim basis at Pocono Raceway. He was scheduled to work with Brad Keselowski, but the rookie failed to qualify, giving McGrew a chance Saturday at jumping right in to help out on the No. 88.

McGrew has gone from a virtual unknown outside racing’s inner circle to one of the most pressure-packed jobs in the sport. His grace period might not last much beyond Pocono.

“I don’t know if any crew chief would sit here and tell you it’s not a little daunting to have the most popular driver in your stable,” McGrew said.

Former Hendrick driver Kyle Busch took delight in delivering a barb at Earnhardt about the perception that his poor finishes were never his fault, always the crew chief.

Earnhardt begrudgingly had to agree.

“Like Kyle said, most of the people have always been on Tony Jr.’s case and never really pointed the finger at me throughout the season,” he said.

Drivers in the garage were quick to defend the Earnhardt-Eury relationship.

“No one understands the pressure that they’ve been under, including myself,” Martin said. “I don’t think I can even comprehend it. Dale Jr. is far and away got the strongest shoulders of any man in NASCAR. There’s some good things that come from being the sport’s most popular and most recognized driver, but there’s a lot of weight on his shoulders as well.”

The longtime Earnhardt-Eury pairing only produced one win in 48 races with Hendrick, and this season saw a flurry of pit-road problems and setup miscalculations.

If Earnhardt keeps an open mind about working with McGrew, perhaps he can regain the form that saw him win six races in 2004. If the poor results keep popping up, then Earnhardt might go down as Hendrick’s free-agent bust.

“We just have to understand that going in and know that those are the stakes when you show up to the racetrack,” Earnhardt said. “You better be able to live up to everybody’s expectations.”