What's the best case scenario for your AFL team in 2025? Now what's the worst case? The likelihood is it will be somewhere in between.
ESPN's Jake Michaels runs his eyes over every club and identifies the best possible, worst possible, and most likely year for each -- the latter being what he believes will eventuate.
Adelaide
Best case: Izak Rankine establishes himself as a top 10 player in the league, adding much needed depth and electricity to the Crows' midfield. Rapid improvement also comes from Riley Thilthorpe and Darcy Fogarty, leading to Adelaide becoming one of the highest scoring teams in the league.
Worst case: The Crows were a bottom four side last year, which feels crazy given they won eight games and amassed a percentage of 99.1. Can things get worse? Well, given the Tigers, Kangaroos, and Eagles still exist, not really.
Most likely: Expect a far better year than last for the Crows, and although they will miss out on a finals berth, they will be in contention for one until the last fortnight of the season.
Brisbane
Best case: It's double delight for the Lions! Brisbane welcome back a host of key players from injury -- as well as the highly touted Levi Ashcroft -- and go back-to-back, sparking early discussions of whether or not they can repeat their threepeat from the beginning of the century.
Worst case: Joe Daniher proves to leave a hole in the forward line the club simply cannot fill. The Lions finish in sixth spot, are beaten in the first week of finals, and Lachie Neale hints at a return to South Australia to end his glittering football career.
Most likely: The Lions are once again the team to beat and storm to a third consecutive Grand Final.
Carlton
Best case: After taking a step in the wrong direction in 2024, the Blues return to preliminary final weekend. Patrick Cripps wins a third Brownlow Medal and discussions on the Carlton captain's standing among the game's greatest of all time ensues.
Worst case: The Carlton side we saw between rounds five and 13 in 2023, and again in the back half of 2024, is what this team really is. Pre-season injuries prove too costly as the depth cannot stand up and the Blues slide to an inexplicable 13th-place finish.
Most likely: The Blues play finals ... again, but struggle to cover injuries ... again. There's too much top end talent for the bottom to fall out of this team completely, no matter how many injuries they're going to have to manage, but are they still in the premiership window? I'm not too sure.
Collingwood
Best case: The premiership hangover proves to be a real thing as the Magpies bounce back from their 2024 slump and return to the Big Dance, justifying Craig McRae's all-in, win now approach.
Worst case: The premiership hangover proves to not be a real thing. Instead, what we got for the bulk of 2024 is what this club is now. The Magpies confirm they used up all of their luck in 2023, repeating last year's disappointing campaign and finishing outside the top eight. Scott Pendlebury then announces his retirement.
Most likely: As is often the case, the reality falls somewhere in the middle. The Magpies, fresh off the recruit of Dan Houston, finish fifth, win a final, and convince Pendlebury to play on for one more year.
Essendon
Best case: The Bombers actually end up being what just about everyone had been quick to label them through the first half of 2024: half decent and, maybe, just maybe, a finalist. Do they win said final? Even in Essendon's best case it feels a little pipe-dreamy.
Worst case: The warning signs were there in the back end of last season. Essendon continues to underwhelm with regularity, winning just six games for the year. That's crazy, you say? Well, they won only three in the final 12 weeks of last season.
Most likely: It's another tease of a season where the Bombers rack up early wins against some of the competition's poorer sides, only to fall apart in the back end and miss out on a finals berth ... again.
Fremantle
Best case: The Dockers make a legitimate case for best and most dynamic midfield in the league, winning 16 games -- just as they did in 2022 -- to storm back into finals. Shai Bolton is the recruit of the year and Justin Longmuir the coach of the year.
Worst case: The end of last season was a precursor to this one. The Dockers finished 2024 with four consecutive losses and begin this season in a similar fashion, struggling to integrate Bolton into the mix, and failing time and again to beat the teams at the pointy end of the ladder.
Most likely: It's steady improvement for Fremantle, who go from 10 wins in 2023, to 12 wins in 2024, to 15ish wins in 2025. They comfortably make finals ... and probably win one.
Geelong
Best case: Chris Scott stakes his latest case to being the greatest coach of the modern era, guiding the Cats back to the top four and deep into September. The kids continue to improve, Patrick Dangerfield shows no signs of slowing down, Jeremy Cameron picks up the Tom Hawkins slack, and Bailey Smith reminds the footy world just how devastating he can be.
Worst case: Last year's preliminary final loss to the Lions ends up being a 'what could have been' moment for the club. Dangerfield and Smith's output is limited and the Cats struggle to be competitive in the midfield, tallying 'just' 10 wins en route to a 12th-place finish.
Most likely: The Cats, who prove near impossible to beat at home, are around the mark once again, but perhaps a notch or two below the teams fighting for the premiership cup. They return to finals, winning one and losing one.
Gold Coast
Best case: At long, long last, the Suns finally get to play football in September. Damien Hardwick's side continues to win at will on their home deck, but learn how to get the job done on the road, building a club-best 14-9 record to finish the home-and-away season in seventh spot.
Worst case: The Suns remain an utter basket case away from home, but this year, their home ground advantage disappears. It means they end the year in the bottom four with a record of 7-16, leaving fans wondering if Hardwick really was -- or is -- the best man for the job.
Most likely: It's another rollercoaster year for the Suns. They record two stunning wins against legitimate premiership chances and slump to two inexplicable losses to bottom four teams. They get to the final month of the season as part of the middle band of teams vying for the final two spots in the top eight.
GWS
Best case: Toby Greene stands atop the MCG dais on the last Saturday in September, holding the premiership cup aloft. The Giants avenge their demons from 2024, win the minor premiership, and, a month later, the club's first flag.
Worst case: The heartbreak and disappointment to end the 2024 campaign carries over into this season as the Giants struggle for consistency and lack a killer instinct. They finish ninth, leaving many to wonder if the premiership window is still ajar.
Most likely: Another deep finals run feels inevitable for the Giants, a team that might have the second best list in the competition for the second year running. There's every chance the club wins its first premiership in 2025.
Hawthorn
Best case: Season 2024 proved to be the sneak peek to what's to come as the Hawks bulldoze their way through the competition and win a fifth premiership in the last 18 years. Sam Mitchell is hailed as the best coach in the sport and talk of another Hawthorn dynasty takes over the off-season.
Worst case: Things look quite different now the Hawks are the hunted and a team with lofty expectation. Mitchell's young side fails to live up to the hype, slumping to a ninth place finish and leaving everyone wondering if their back half of 2024 was the greatest of anomalies.
Most likely: The Hawks are one of the four best teams in the competition from the beginning of the season until the end. They win at least one final and prove, under Mitchell, they are set up for success over the next half a dozen years.
Melbourne
Best case: The Demons put all of their off-field troubles behind them, as well as their recent finals failures, making the most of the talented list and soft draw to return to the preliminary finals. As a result, Simon Goodwin is rewarded with another two year deal, while Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver commit to the club long term.
Worst case: Goodwin, Petracca, and Oliver all depart the club after yet another failed season in which the Demons finish bottom six. Melbourne's premiership window has officially slammed shut with no sign it will re-open any time soon.
Most likely: With the benefit of a bottom six draw, the Demons take advantage and return to the September action. They win their first final since beating the Bulldogs at Optus Stadium for the 2021 premiership and, at long last, have something positive to talk about.
North Melbourne
Best case: The acquisition of league veterans, plus the emergence of the highly touted youth, help the Kangaroos to its best season in seven years. The club wins nine games, and could very easily have won more, showing the doom and gloom is now firmly in the rearview mirror.
Worst case: It's same old, same old. The Kangaroos win just three games, the exact amount of wins the club has averaged over the past five years. It leads to star on-baller Luke Davies-Uniacke following in the footsteps of fellow hyphen Jason Horne-Francis, begging the club for a trade.
Most likely: The Kangaroos step out of the 'Bottom Three', gapping the Eagles and Tigers and showing signs of a bright future under Alastair Clarkson. They win six to seven games but, crucially, are competitive for much of the season.
Port Adelaide
Best case: The Power come up agonisingly short of sending long-time coach Ken Hinkley off in style, falling in an epic preliminary final. Still, it's viewed as the best year the club has had since winning the premiership 21 years ago, as they win 18 games and stake their claim for having the best midfield in the competition.
Worst case: Tension in the coaching box begins to bubble right from Round 1 and Hinkley is relieved of his duties before the mid-season byes. Port's run at the top of the ladder comes to an abrupt end as the club wins 11 games and misses finals.
Most likely: Port Adelaide is exactly what it has been for the last half decade, a fringe contender that's capable of beating anyone on their day. Fittingly, in Hinkley's final season at the helm, they finish the home and away season in six place, and are slightly better than a 50-50 to win their elimination final.
Richmond
Best case: Tom Lynch returns to his devastating best and the kids prove the future is bright at Tigerland, despite winning just four games for the season.
Worst case: The Tigers become the first team since Fitzroy in 1964 to go through an entire football season without a single win. The club heads into the off-season with a totally demoralised playing group, with many on the outside wondering if Adem Yze's job is safe.
Most likely: It's back-to-back wooden spoons for Richmond, who, to the surprise of nobody, prove to be a couple of rungs below West Coast and North Melbourne. Yze's squad wins just two games for the season and ... wouldn't you know it, the premature priority pick discussions begin...
St Kilda
Best case: Last season proves to be the aberration as the Saints return to finals, albeit sneaking in to eighth spot. But just like in 2023, Ross Lyon's side is no match for their elimination final opponent, well beaten and left wondering how to take that next step.
Worst case: The Saints continue to struggle putting points on the board and eventually replace the Kangaroos as part of the AFL's 'Bottom Three'. They win just five games and leave many question the decision to bring the ultra defensive Lyon back to the club.
Most likely: Once again, St Kilda is a middling side. Not bad, not great, not interesting, just ... there. They score one or two shock wins throughout a rather uneventful season that yields a 12th place finish.
Sydney
Best case: Last season's horror ending burns a fire in the belly of every Swans player. The club makes a statement in the opening month that it is once again a premiership threat, eventually running through the competition en route to yet another Grand Final appearance. The best part? Midfield superstar Chad Warner inks a new deal to stay at the club.
Worst case: Two Grand Final capitulations in three years takes its toll on the Swans, who add to the statistic of teams that are belted in the final game of the season and fail to fire a shot the following year. Warner's departure for Western Australia is the rotten cherry on top.
Most likely: The Swans are re-energised under new coach Dean Cox, once again among a handful of teams legitimately contending for the premiership. They finish the season in the top four and win, at least, one final.
West Coast
Best case: In year two, midfield phenom Harley Reid leaps into the competition's truly elite and featuring prominently on Brownlow Medal night, despite the Eagles winning 'just' seven games. Emerging names like Elijah Hewett, Tyrell Dewar, and Reuben Ginbey become household names, and West Coast shows flashes that the future is brighter than many thought.
Worst case: Jake Waterman is unable to recapture his glittering 2024 form, Reid stagnates, and the veterans announce they'll play on ... limiting opportunity for the younger brigade. The Eagles finish the year with four wins and provide fans with very few positives.
Most likely: It's more slow, steady, gradual improvement for West Coast, who won two games in 2022, three in 2023, and five last year. They win six games, become a more competitive team on their home deck, and end the year with many bullish about the future.
Western Bulldogs
Best case: The Bulldogs -- somewhat -- deliver on the hype and promise they've been teasing for four seasons, finishing fifth and putting themselves in a position to compete for a spot on Grand Final day. Luke Beveridge is rewarded with the coaching extension he craves.
Worst case: After winning a premiership 2016, and making another Grand Final in 2021, Beveridge's time at the club draws to a close, following another season of his Bulldogs underachieving. The Dogs miss finals, wasting another year of Marcus Bontempelli's prime, and, making matters worse, Jamarra Ugle-Hagan requests a trade.
Most likely: It's another finals campaign for the Bulldogs, but this time they win one ... the club's first win in September since making the decider in 2021. Sam Darcy enjoys a breakout year, staking his claim to being a top 25 player in the league.