1 minute ago, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

Jeffo for starters...

Will be offered a new contract soon!

19 hours ago, BoBo said:

Daicos surely

All of the above.

7 hours ago, Docs Demons said:

What has he actually done to be so important to a few on here. Has not set the world on fire at all.

Well what do you mean by important? I don't think anyone is projecting him to be the next great white hope, but plenty recognise his ability and potential. Let's not forget he isn't even close to hitting 100 games; he's 65 games into his career and is still 21 (22 in September).

Given Humphrey's age and lineal growth since being drafted, I think it's fair to say you would be recruiting largely on potential as it stands, but that's not to say he hasn't exhibited some pretty strong indications of what he'll be able to achieve. For mine, he's one of the few in the under 23 category who I would say is a genuine mid-forward and IMO, he could be very similar to Robbie Gray. His versatility (with reference to an attacking mid/forward ability) would really add something to our current list and outside of Koz (who is a fairly different type of player to Hump anyway), I don't think we actually have many other players who can regularly, credibly and with effect move into that rotation*.

If I'm using one attribute as a point of reference for his potential, and what it would mean for our side, it's his ability to translate a contested ball into a genuine forward 50 threat. Fundamentally, what really stands out when watching Humphrey is that he has an innate skill and effectiveness in winning a contested ball, maintaining possession and then controlling the tempo of the game, and then carry the ball into the forward 50. So he doesn't just have the ability to win a ball (i.e., in a similar vein to Viney), but he actually converts these possessions in contested / attacking scenarios into genuine scoring opportunities in the forward 50. So essentially, you're looking at a player who not only is capable of winning his own ball, but also has the vision, skill and decision-making to turn those possessions into shots on goal, or into a goal assist for teammates.

Outside of this, Humphrey has also demonstrated an ability to score himself when in the F50, so he's not only a threat on the spread and on the offensive play, but he's a threat in front of the goals.

I actually see Humphrey as being a bit of a replacement for Petracca, as he's probably our most recently player who fits into that mould of being a dynamic, powerful and unpredictable threat (once again, with reference to a MID/FWD ability).

*The closest player(s) we'd probably have that really do have a solid Mid/FWD game would be Koz, or Chandler (probably more FWD/MID). Chandler isn't a centre square/rest in forward line player like Humphrey though, his utility is in the linking play on the transition out of the D50 and into the F50.

TLDR: Humphrey has an ability to convert his contested acumen into damaging F50 possessions/scoring opportunities and has shown a genuine ability and trajectory to be a significant and damaging offensive AFL player.