The Magpies' 2020 will long be remembered for the tumultuous off-season period which saw the club lose star midfielder Adam Treloar, flashy forward Jaidyn Stephenson, wingman Tom Phillips and youngster Atu Bosenavulagi in ugly fashion.
On the field though, the 'Pies weren't great, but they weren't terrible. The club was riddled with injury and suspensions to key players for big parts of the year and as a result, were in a dog fight for a finals berth for most of the season before clinching a finals spot on the eve of the finals series, finishing 7th on the ladder.
Collingwood ultimately played their Grand Final in the first week of the 2020 finals series in an elimination final in Perth against the Eagles team. West Coast hadn't lost a game in Perth all season and the Magpies had their backs against the wall, but pulled off a major upset, winning by one point.
The Magpies' first week success was short-lived though after they were comprehensively beaten by Geelong in their semi-final clash at the Gabba by 68 points.
In - Oliver Henry (draft), Finlay Macrae (draft), Reef McInnes (draft), Caleb Poulter (draft), Liam McMahon (draft), Beau McCreery (draft)
Out - Flynn Appleby (delisted), Dayne Beams (retired), Atu Bosenavulagi (traded to North Melbourne), Tim Broomhead (delisted), Lynden Dunn (retired), Tom Langdon (retired), Tom Phillips (traded to Hawthorn), Ben Reid (retired), Matthew Scharanberg (delisted), Jaidyn Stephenson (traded to North Melbourne), Adam Treloar (traded to Western Bulldogs), Travis Varcoe (retired), Rupert Wills (delisted)
C-
Collingwood's hands were tied due to a tight contract budget, having to let go key players that they were desperate to retain. They had a solid draft night and will look to move on quickly from the noise surrounding the state of the club after the off-season period.
The Magpies still have enough talent and experience on their list to be a contender and remain in the finals hunt, but the question marks surrounding the nature of the off-season and the club as a whole also make Collingwood's 2021 a tricky situation to predict.
It's certainly not a pass, but a handy draft period saved them somewhat.
The opening month of the 2021 season will be the most defining period for the Pies.
Given the nature of their off-season and the consistent noise and backlash surrounding the club in all facets, the fans will be looking for something to get excited and cheer about.
A solid first month could just give the club and its fans the hope they will be looking for and show the football world that the Magpies have quickly moved on from all the events that had taken place prior to the season.
B: Jack Crisp, Jordan Roughead, Brayden Maynard
HB: Isaac Quaynor, Darcy Moore, Jeremy Howe
C: Chris Mayne, Scott Pendlebury, Josh Daicos
HF: Callum Brown, Brody Mihocek, Will Hoskin-Elliott
F: Jordan De Goey, Mason Cox, Jamie Elliott
Foll: Brodie Grundy, Taylor Adams, Steele Sidebottom
I/C: Tyler Brown, Brayden Sier, John Noble, Levi Greenwood
Collingwood's strengths lay within their backline and midfield. For a fair chunk of the 2020 season, the 'Pies were the hardest team to score against, and with the return of star Jeremy Howe, who was in All-Australian form before his season ending knee injury, they will be well placed to continue building from a strong defence.
Their midfield is also a major strength, with plenty of depth and talent running through the engine room, led by star ruckman Brodie Grundy, captain Scott Pendlebury, 2020 best and fairest winner Taylor Adams and a returning Steele Sidebottom, who can all change a game at any given moment.
The biggest weakness for the Pies is going forward. Despite starting off 2020 in cracking form and scoring at will, Nathan Buckley's side really struggled from then on going forward and were unable to consistently put up a big score.
The club was unable to address their need for a match-winning key forward in the off-season and lost rising star Jaidyn Stephenson to North Melbourne in the process, so the forward line is still an area that needs a bit more consistency.
9th
Collingwood will be in another fight for a finals spot in 2021 and have a list that's very capable of making it.
But with fears that the off-season period has the potential to damage the club early on, mixed with a number of other clubs fighting it out for a similar position on the ladder, we have them finishing just outside the top-eight.