At the moment, there is no doubt Essendon are going to get under Paddy's market value which will leave supporters and the club somewhat disappointed.
With exit clauses hanging over your player's heads (and Patrick being the first player who may seek to exercise such clause), Essendon are going to want to get a trade done fairly quickly, as playing hardball may ultimately allow the floodgates to open for other players, which is certainly not in their best interests. (Then again, if the club is quick to accept a deal that is well below his true worth that would be a huge indicator to me that players may easily activate the exit clauses).
Couple that with the fact he has a show-cause notice hanging over his head (this would significantly drop his value), and makes a nomination for a particular club (whispers suggest Brisbane), then a second round draft pick would be a great result for Essendon IMHO. If the whispers are correct, Brisbane do not need another pure ruckman and it is clear he would become our main forward target. As he is relatively untried as a permanent forward this would again decrease his worth in our eyes. (I personally believe he would be very successful for us kicking 50+ goals).
The ramifications of getting a second rounder when he is worth a first far outweigh the potential floodgates that may be opened by activating an exit clause.
