Round 23 of the 2025 AFL season is in the books. So, it's time to react ... or overreact to the biggest talking points of the week.
Should Izak Rankine be allowed to play again in season 2025? Can the Crows win the premiership without him?
Let's get to this week's overreactions, where we judge a few major takeaways as legitimate or irrational.
Izak Rankine shouldn't play again in season 2025
It has been alleged Crows star Izak Rankine used an offensive, anti-gay slur during Adelaide's epic win over Collingwood on Saturday evening. If Rankine is found guilty, what does it mean for his season? Should he be allowed to feature in finals?
Verdict: Not an overreaction
If the AFL's precedent is anything to go by (and it simply has to be) then Rankine has to have played his last game of the season, regardless of how far the Crows go. This is the sixth such offence since the beginning of last year, here's how the league has punished the previous five:
Jeremy Finlayson (April, 2024) - three game suspension
Wil Powell (May, 2024) - five game suspension
Lance Collard (July, 2024) - six game suspension
Jack Graham (July, 2025) - four game suspension
Riak Andrew (July, 2025) - five game suspension
The AFL has made a point of compounding the penalty each time, almost using each instance as a warning for the entire league. It is worth noting a discount has been offered for those who have self reported their offence, but not enough to drastically reduce it. It's not yet clear if Rankine did self report, though The Age is reporting he called the player to whom he directed the slur the following day to apologise.
Being the sixth such instance of an anti-gay slur being used in the past 16 months, excuses have worn thin. The league needs to remain consistent and punish Rankine accordingly. It is not good enough that experienced, professional footballers are using these slurs considering the audience that watches (both in numbers and in age). The harm it can cause for not only young people watching, but those in the AFL cannot be understated, and alientating an already marginalised group of people isn't good enough.
The league cannot soften just because we're on the cusp of a finals campaign.
So, could Rankine have cost the Crows a flag?
The Crows can't win the flag without Izak Rankine
Obviously if the allegations against Rankine proven to be true, and he's hit with a four-game (or more) suspension or more as precedent suggests, it's a massive blow (in football terms). Rankine has been in All-Australian form and is Adelaide's most electric and dangerous player. Missing him for the entire finals series would undeniably make the Crows' premiership bid a whole lot tougher.
Verdict: Overreaction
But to say they can't win it without him? That's probably slightly too far. Adelaide is not a one-man band. Matthew Nicks' forward line is stacked with talent, led by trio of talls Taylor Walker, Darcy Fogarty, and Riley Thilthorpe who are devastating aerially and have booted 127 goals between them in 2025.
Then you've got Ben Keays and Alex Neal-Bullen who bring immense pressure, James Peatling adds flexibility across the ground and has also proven to be able to hit the scoreboard, and the prospect of Josh Rachele's September return from a knee injury to immediately injects even more spark and goal nous.
Defensively, they're rock solid with Mark Keane and Josh Worrell leading the way and anchoring a backline that continues to frustrate the opposition -- as they did against the Magpies on the weekend.
Remember, while Rankine's absence leaves a big hole in their midfield, Adelaide's dominance in other areas has been built on the collective effort.
Can they win the flag without him? Absolutely, and their statistical profile also says so. Will they? That's another story. Maybe not. But to rule them out entirely is an overreaction.