Nick Daicos had the Brownlow Medal around his neck. Jeremy Cameron had another Coleman and was heading towards a ton of goals.
Six weeks ago, the duo were unbackable favourites for the AFL's prestigious individual gongs.
Now, at halftime of the season, the challengers have arrived.
Daicos, Collingwood's brilliant 20-year-old playmaker in just his second AFL season, is no longer a shoo-in to become the youngest Brownlow medallist since Chris Judd's win as a 20-year-old in 2004.
And Cameron isn't the outright leader for the Coleman - and the feat of becoming the first player to kick a century of goals in a season since Lance Franklin in 2008 looks remote.
Brownlow markets are shrinking around Daicos, who is still favoured by bookies to win the umpire-voted medal.
But Port Adelaide's Zak Butters, along with renowned vote-getters Christian Petracca, of Melbourne, and Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli, are on the move.
Butters, 22, entered the last round ahead of Daicos in the AFL Coaches Association’s champion player award.
"A tough, brave little p***k who takes big moments and turns them into something special," his coach Ken Hinkley said after Butters torched Melbourne in round 10.
Butters' arrival as a Brownlow contender comes amid Petracca's continued excellence for the Demons - some flagging him for three best-afield displays in the past five games.
Petracca is a proven umpire eye-catcher, polling 24 votes last year, 23 in 2021, and 20 in the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
Plus, his midfield mate Clayton Oliver, another proven vote-puller, has missed the past two games through injury.
Also making moves are perennial poller Lachie Neale from the Brisbane Lions, the Brownlow winner in 2020 and last year's runner-up, and roughies such as Richmond recruit Tim Taranto and Essendon's Zach Merrett.
Which all suits Daicos.
"The start of the year has been a little overwhelming for me ... I don’t want all that attention," Daicos said recently.
"I try to deflect it to the team because I genuinely feel like I’m not the player I am without them ... I do get very uncomfortable with the spotlight."
The Coleman race is wide open, after Cameron's sizzling start to the season - 27 goals after six rounds - has become more of a slow burn.
Geelong's attacking ace, who won the Coleman in 2019 at GWS, now shares top billing with Carlton's Charlie Curnow, last year's winner.
Both have booted 38 goals, six more than a chasing pack of Charlie Cameron, Oscar Allen, Tom Hawkins and Nick Larkey.
The AFL's other major individual award, the Rising Star, appears down to a field of two favourites: North Melbourne's Harry Sheezel and Brisbane's Will Ashcroft.
They're already nominated for the award open to players aged under 21 on January 1 this year who had played 10 or fewer games before the season started.
Sheezel (averaging 26.5 disposals a game) and Ashcroft (22.8) are producing stellar debut seasons and bookies list them well ahead of players such as Gold Coast's Bailey Humphrey, the Giants' Finn Callaghan and St Kilda's Mitch Owens.
