It is understood Langdon has been offered a new two-year deal to remain at Collingwood, but he was looking for a three-year deal on improved terms. Langdon was close to the most important player on the ground in the last quarter of the semi-final against the Giants and in the first half of the grand final against West Coast, having stepped into the role made vacant when Jeremy Howe was injured in the lead-up to the finals. The Magpies had kept him waiting for a contract offer after he made a slow start to the season to ensure their options were open if either of the Gold Coast co-captains, Tom Lynch and Steven May, indicated they wanted to join Collingwood. Langdon's manager, Scott Lucas, said that as a result they began to explore his options before the season finished, contacting all clubs – and several teams, including the Swans and the Fremantle Dockers, expressed interest. Complicating the picture is how a deal would be struck for Langdon if he chose to join either club.

The Swans traded out their first pick for a pair of second-round picks on Wednesday, as they need points to secure academy player Nick Blakey and this can be achieved with multiple second-round picks rather than just the first pick. The Swans now have picks 26, 28 and 33 – but they will need to use the points from some of these picks to cover for Blakey, though there is also an option to go into deficit on draft points for an academy player. The Swans could try to offer future draft picks. They would receive a pick for Dan Hannebery from St Kilda, possibly the Saints' future second-round pick. Fremantle also have plenty on their plate, with deals in play to secure Rory Lobb from Greater Western Sydney and a decision looming on Melbourne's Jesse Hogan and their own best-and-fairest winner Lachie Neale, who wants to join Brisbane. But the Langdon brothers are extremely close and Ed received the Dockers' best clubman award in 2018.

Langdon's management has continued their dialogue with Collingwood, although they have not accepted the offer made despite his preference being to stay with the Magpies. "Tom has got something to consider," Lucas told Macquarie Sports Radio. Collingwood list manager Ned Guy said on the opening day of the trade period that re-signing Langdon, who did not finish top 10 in the Magpies' best and fairest, was a priority and they hoped to convince him to remain – although Lucas indicated the offer was not at the level they wanted at this stage. "The terms are always important and Collingwood have got some challenges around that. That is for them to work through," Lucas said. However, he indicated that if they came up with an acceptable offer, Langdon would like to remain.