Former Essendon skipper Jobe Watson is set to be rushed back into the AFL side as the Bombers look to arrest their form slump against Geelong on Saturday night at the MCG.
Watson sat out last round's loss to Fremantle after some inconsistent early-season form following a year and a half out of the game due to a shoulder injury and a doping ban.
In his last outing against Melbourne in round six, Watson only managed a meagre 13 disposals in a 38-point loss.
Essendon teammate Zach Merrett said the 32-year-old had been "buzzing around the club" and he expected him to be back to his best after a week's break.
"I think he'd be hard to leave out," Merrett said at the launch of the annual Country Festival match between the two sides.
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"It would be a tough call for Woosha (coach John Worsfold) to leave out a guy who's got so much experience and I think he's still playing some fantastic footy."
Essendon's No.1 draft pick Andrew McGrath also had the week off and Merrett said the 18-year-old would be better for the break.
"He's a little energetic kid and he's been super since he came in so we're looking forward to him coming back."
The Bombers played their previous three games in the space of 13 days but Merrett said the cramped schedule wasn't behind their mixed results, with two losses and a win.
He felt the team needed to improve their contested footy, which he described as sloppy.
Meanwhile, Geelong skipper Joel Selwood was also expected to play despite suffering an ankle injury in their loss to Gold Coast.
Cats teammate Tom Hawkins said while he wasn't a certainty he was moving freely.
"He was sore on the weekend but we had a light session today and he participated," Hawkins said.
