Hot Takes & Hand Grenades: Essendon’s Most Unhinged (Sort Of) Predictions for 2026
In this episode of Don The Stat, Jono and Ian dive into a stack of listener-submitted hot takes for the 2026 season, ranging from the genuinely insightful to the absolutely off-the-rails. We cover list size reform, the Zach Merrett trade debate, and whether Scott Gumbleton is Essendon’s biggest non-saga “what if” of the past 20 years. We look at coaching structures, concussion subs, the new ruck rules, and whether Blakiston could really be in All-Australian conversations. There’s chat about the supplements saga, whether Rutten was unfairly blamed, and a surprising number of predictions…
The skinny
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