Geelong fans can expect a new deal for captain Patrick Dangerfield shortly after the trade period concludes, with an agreement between the Cats and their skipper to be "a pretty quick thing".
Dangerfield, who is the last remaining restricted free agent in 2024, is yet to recommit at Kardinia Park for an 18th season in the AFL and a 10th in Cats colours.
But the 34-year-old nor Geelong football boss, Andrew Mackie, has given much thought to landing a new deal soon, with even a brief phone call over the weekend more than enough time spent on the matter in Dangerfield's eyes.
"They're good. I must admit, it hasn't taken up too much time out of mine, or Pat's or the Connors group," Mackie said of negotiations with the 337-gamer.
"I rang Pat on the weekend, and I said, 'We'll get to your thing', and he said, 'You've spent one second too much on it'. It's not going to take too much longer than that.
"Pat's going to be with us, and the contract would be a pretty quick thing. We'll move through that easily."
The Cats are prioritising a busy trade window, with talks on a trade deal for Western Bulldogs star Bailey Smith anticipated to extend into the final days of the exchange period, which closes next Wednesday.
Mackie has poured cold water on a move for Melbourne superstar Clayton Oliver but failed to rule out his club's potential hopes of luring the four-time Demons best and fairest to the Cattery.
At least one thing is a guarantee for Geelong, with delisted Carlton forward Jack Martin to join the club next month as a delisted free agent.
Martin has elected to land on the Cats' list for the 2025 season, knocking back interest from Western Australia and Queensland to continue his AFL career in the hoops.
The 29-year-old managed just three games in 2024 due to multiple soft-tissue setbacks, a battle Martin has been losing for the past several seasons - having failed to play more than 16 games in a single year since 2017.
The Cats are well aware of the task at hand to get Martin back to full fitness, with Mackie excited by the prospect of what the best-case scenario looks like.
"We're aware of (the injury concern) clearly, but really excited about what the possibility could be if we get that right," Mackie said.
"It's going to be a work in progress with lots of people. We're open-minded about how that could look and how it would work from a loading point of view and from a genuine management point of view.
"A quality person Jack is, so we're really looking forward to the first of November, putting him on our list and seeing what can happen.
"Hopefully, the change as much as anything might work, there's no guarantees with that one, and we're open-minded but excited about the prospect of it."
Geelong currently hold Picks 17, 38, 56 and 74 for this year's AFL Draft, with their earliest selection likely to be involved in a trade for Smith.
