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Each week of the 2026 AFL season, ESPN.com.au's Jake Michaels looks at six big talking points.
This week's Six Points feature the devastating Demons, why this week is do or die for Carlton, some support for under fire Tigers coach Adem Yze, and why we need to be talking about Oisin Mullin a whole lot more.
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1. Is Melbourne the best side in Victoria?
There's no team I have been more wildly wrong on this season than the Demons. With a new coach, no Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver, or Jack Viney (for most of the season, at least), and coming off a disappointing seven-win campaign in 2025, I had them just about penciled in for a bottom four finish. And yet with five games remaining they sit sixth, one win shy of second-placed Sydney, and only percentage outside the bottom four.
Steven King has done an exceptional job in his first season at the helm, and if not for Justin Longmuir and the Dockers, he would be the runaway favourite to be named coach of the year. It's not just his results, either. He has this side playing an attractive, attacking brand of football that's made them arguably the most watchable in the league. All of it got me wondering, right now is there a better team in Victoria?
You might be tempted to lobby for the third-ranked Hawks, but the Demons boast two wins against them this season. The first was by 39 points at the MCG and the second by 35 points in Launceston, snapping a 12-game Hawks winning streak in Tasmania.
It can't be the Cats, who have lost five of their last seven games. The Bulldogs did beat the Dees by three points earlier in the year, but they've been far more inconsistent over the course of the season, losing five times by margins of at least 35 points. They also have the worst percentage of any team in the top 11. No other Victorian team deserves to be in the conversation.
Is it the Demons? Don't be too hasty in dismissing it. No longer is Melbourne simply a fun story or the surprise packet of the year, but rather a legitimate flag contender that will fear nobody at the MCG (where they are 9-0 this season) when the whips are cracking.
2. Every club would be better with Oisin Mullin
Oisin Mullin's unlikely to win many awards, nor is he going to be spoken about in any All-Australian meeting, but the value he provides Geelong week in, week out is arguably on par with that of his far more heralded teammates.
Last Thursday night, Mullin blanketed St Kilda superstar Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera for four quarters, the latest A-grader he's kept quiet in season 2026. Mullin's own impact with ball in hand mightn't set the world alight, but his ability to significantly restrict the influence of the opposition's best player more than makes up for it.
That 'impact' figure represents the defensive impact Mullin has had on these opponents. A mark of -75% against Finn Callaghan means Mullin reduced the GWS midfielder's output by 75% from what was expected, per 100 minutes. In other words, he restricted him to just 25% of his usual production.
It's no coincidence that the only game this season I don't have Daicos polling in the Brownlow Medal was Round 9 against the Cats. It's also no surprise Bontempelli's lowest-rated game of the season was in Round 6 against the Cats.
You'd be crazy to field a team without a fullback trying to stop the opposition's most damaging forward, so why wouldn't you want to slow down the opposition's best midfielder? And if you have someone who can cut that impact by 50%, or more, then it's a monumental weapon to have in your arsenal.
3. I think we need to cut Adem Yze some slack
A rather concerning football stat landed in my inbox on Monday morning: Adem Yze has the worst coaching record in football history after 65 games (10-55).
I'm not here to tell you it's not as bad as it appears (it is!) but I also don't believe any coach could have done a whole lot more with this young, inexperienced, rebuilding list over the last few seasons. Say what you want about Yze, but he's had next to no continuity since taking over the role ahead of season 2024.
This year, Richmond has used the equal-most players of any team (40), they have just one player who has played every game for the season (Seth Campbell), and no team has lost more games to injury of players who have played between 0 and 50 games. Sam Lalor, the top selection from two years ago, has played 19 of a possible 41 games. Taj Hotton (pick 12) has featured just 12 times in two years, while Josh Smillie (pick 7) is yet to make his debut!
Can we really blame Yze or make a determination on whether he can or can't coach if his personnel has been unable to get on the park? Cut him and the Tigers some slack. At least for another 12 months.
4. It's season over if the Blues lose to the Suns on Saturday
As remarkable as Carlton's resurgence under Josh Fraser has been, it will all be for naught should they fall to Gold Coast on Saturday afternoon at Marvel Stadium.
Back-to-back losses to Hawthorn and Collingwood have halted the Blues' rise up the ladder and left them desperate to return to winning ways. Of course, the diabolical 1-8 start to the year always meant their was next-to-no margin for error in the back half of the season, and one more loss will all but draw the curtains on this bizarre 2026 campaign.
After the Suns, the Blues end the home-and-away season with games against Brisbane, St Kilda, Western Bulldogs, and Fremantle, all of them to be played at Marvel Stadium. All four teams are ranked higher on the ladder and all four are likely to start favourite over the Blues. Splitting these games 2-2 would be considered a strong result, but even that's unlikely to be enough to qualify for finals, even with a win over the Suns this week.
In many ways Gold Coast has had an anti-Carlton season. This club, that recruited Christian Petracca and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan in a busy offseason, began the year with three massive wins, shortened to premiership favourite, and is now riding a diabolical eight-game losing streak.
The silver lining to missing finals and sliding down the ladder is that it will ultimately cost the Blues less to land star father-son Cody Walker. But on the other hand, the business of football is winning and this year has to be assessed as a failure if the club falls short of a top 10 finish.
5. Something quirky I noticed
Two weeks ago, Jake Stringer booted seven goals to beat ladder leading Fremantle. This week, Stringer kicked 0.7 in a shock loss to bottom-of-the-ladder Essendon.
In doing so, Stringer become just the fifth player on record to have eight or more shots at goal but finish with zero goals. He also joins Justin Longmuir as the only player in recorded history to kick seven or more behinds with zero goals.
6. My favourite stat of the week
Speaking of Bontempelli and his Rating Points, on Sunday afternoon the Bulldogs skipper torched the Suns at People First Stadium. It was the 93rd game of his career with 20+ Rating Points, which ties Patrick Dangerfield for the most such games in recorded history.
It was also his 34th game with 25+ Rating Points. That moves him into second spot, behind only Gary Ablett (37).
