Richmond premiership midfielder Brandon Ellis has put a pause on contract negotiations as he prepares to explore his free agency opportunities, according to a afl.com.au report.
Ellis, who is a restricted free agent at the end of the 2019 season, has received interest from multiple Victorian clus, including Carlton, North Melbourne and Essendon.
Interestate clubs are also keeping an eye on Ellis' situation.
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The 25-year-old will reportedly meet with his management in the next month, in order to assess his options for 2020.
Ellis last re-signed with the Tigers in August 2017, and is a top-10 earner at the club.
However, since then, the Tigers have lured former Sun Tom Lynch to the club, as well as signed 11 premiership players on healthy contracts beyond 2019.
Those names include Dustin Martin, Nick Vlastuin, Dylan Grimes, Daniel Rioli and Kane Lambert.
As a result, Ellis is expected to be bumped down the earners list at Richmond, should he want to stay.
Last month, Richmond coach Damien Hardwick admitted he had been too harsh on Ellis.
"He's had some challenges, there's no doubt. The great thing about Brandon, the thing I love, is he accepts the areas he's got to get better at," Hardwick said.
"But also as a coaching group, I probably didn't understand and back in his strengths enough. That was on me. To his credit, he's gone on and is playing some wonderful footy. "
Despite Hardwick's comments, Ellis continues to build his reputation as an elite runner, ranking second at Richmond for distance covered per match, covering 15.45km per game, according to Champion Data.
This includes a 16.44km effort against the Dockers back in round 8.
Given current circumstances, it seems unlikely that Ellis, a member of Richmond's historic 2017 flag, will stay at Punt Road.
However, he's put forward his case if he does decide to stay, playing 12 of 14 games this year, and averaging 22 disposals.
Ellis has an impressive resume at the Tigers, finishing second in the Best and Fairest in 2014, winning the Yiooken Award for best-on-ground during the 2015 Dreamtime at the G game, as well as being a Richmond life member.