Each year it seems AFL fans are banking on a different player to rise above expectations to cap an All-Australian level season after years of middling performances.
High draft picks, adjusted roles or players in their early 20s showing glimpses of being elite create the most off-season buzz from December to March, and this summer is no exception.
In years past, pundits have pre-empted the breakout of Jake Stringer, Cameron Rayner, Errol Gulden and Charlie Curnow just to name a few. Some rise with the pressure, while others succumb to it.
In 2024, the fate of many teams rests primarily on the improvement of their young guns, some are hoping to fill a void left by departing greats and some are looking to bolster an area of the field for a particular team.
We've named five players who need a breakout campaign this year for the sake of their teams and their own career arcs.
5. Paddy Dow
Paddy Dow has the chance to completely flip his career arc from Carlton's number two draft bust to the missing piece in St Kilda's midfield.
Of late, off-season recruits have broken out with their career-best season, like Jordan Dawson and George Hewett have done the past two years. but for the sake of his AFL career, Dow is praying for 2024 to be his breakout party.
In a side begging for more midfield talent, Dow will have more chances than ever to star for the Saints under Ross Lyon, aged 24 entering his seventh season and fresh off arguably his four career-best games in consecutive appearances for Carlton last year.
He may be the third midfield option behind Jack Steele and Brad Crouch, pending the form of Seb Ross and Marcus Windhager, but he is no longer competing for spots with Patrick Cripps, Sam Walsh, Adam Cerra and George Hewett.
While St Kilda's fate doesn't rest on Paddy Dow's 2024 production, his own future in the AFL might, making him one of the most under-pressure players of the year.
