It's officially silly season as the AFL opens the start of the 2026 Trade Period.
Some moves were confirmed since the Free Agency window opened on Friday, but there's plenty more movement expected over the next 10 days.
Here we've looked at every club's potential trade and free agency moves, their current crop of off-contract players, confirmed departures and draft hand for the off-season.
Essendon
Reported Trade Targets: Jack Viney, Will McLachlan, Jack Bowes, Laitham Vandermeer
Off-Contract Players: Archie Perkins, Jayden Nguyen, Kayle Gerreyn, Nikolas Cox, Tom Edwards
Confirmed Departures: Saad El-Hawli (delisted), Jade Gresham (delisted), Matt Guelfi (delisted), Liam McMahon (delisted), Elijah Tsatas (delisted)
Draft Hand: 1, 19, 60
It's the Zach Merrett saga part two.
The Bombers have rejected Hawthorn's first offer for their prized midfielder; however, their hard-line stance this year makes far more sense than it did 12 months ago. This is because the Bombers could receive free agency compensation this time next year if the Hawks do not pony up with a suitable bounty in this window.
A lot of Essendon's mooted arrivals look at raising their floor, as opposed to their ceiling, under the watchful eyes of first-year coach Mark McVeigh, and exemplary football person John Longmire.
Their pursuit of wantaway Demon Jack Viney makes entire sense, although they compete with another fallen powerhouse, the West Coast Eagles, for his services.
Jack Bowes is in the market for a third AFL club, and has nominated the Bombers as his preferred destination, turning down Adelaide and North Melbourne in favour of the Dons.
The Bombers will also be out to maximise the return defender Jordan Ridley commands, with the injury-plagued Crichton Medallist in search of a new home. Geelong are in the market for his services, and given both clubs have a player that wants to get to the other, a trade involving both Bowes and Ridley makes sense.
Auxiliary pieces Will McLachlan and Laitham Vandermeer may not set the world alight for the Bombers, but they would allow raw commodities to continue developing in the twos, as opposed to under the microscope that comes with the bright lights of AFL football.
