At the risk of sounding like a poster I think it’s going to be as important to decide who we keep as it will be who we draft. It’s the combination of the 2 which will deliver our next flag.
Exhibit A - Dan Rioli for Josh Smillie. Whether or not you rate Smillie, it cannot be argued that Smillie’s potential ceiling is far higher than Rioli’s over the next 10 years. These are not choices with a net zero sum game. There will be a clear winner and loser from this trade. Exhibit B with Bolton - Hotton and Baker with Faull. (We can argue 23 for Norfs first rounder might make the Rioli trade the deal of the century.
Similarly, keeping Lynch give Faull, Armstrong and Sim 3 years of quality on field forward craft coaching. You might say he won’t play but he can still develop these kids. It’s beautiful.
For me, this is the art of list management. If we get this right, it will be Blair’s flag and Toce’s legacy.
If it doesn’t come off, we can’t argue it wasn’t worth a crack.