GEELONG coach Chris Scott believes Jimmy Bartel will play on next year and says speculation around the 2007 Brownlow medallist's future is overblown. 

AFL.com.au reported on Monday that Bartel may have to spend time in the VFL next season if he signed on for another year. 

The 32-year-old is out of contract at the end of 2016 but will trigger a contract clause in the coming weeks to play on if he chooses to – a decision Scott believes Bartel will make.

"My suspicion at the moment is that he will," the coach said.

"There has been a little bit of talk that seems to be slanted towards the negative, and I'm struggling to understand that."

Whether he lines up for Geelong in 2016 largely rests on Bartel's shoulders.

"The ball is squarely in his court," Scott said.

"No player has absolute say on how they finish their career, because in our view at least, with the current administration, the club absolutely trumps the individual."

However, talk that Bartel would have to spend time in the reserves has been overblown, according to Scott.

"If he plays well enough next year to demand a spot in our best 22, he plays AFL," Scott said.

"You don't have hypothetical conversations with players around things going really well, because that speaks for itself. What you do need to plan for a little bit, is worst-case scenarios."

Scott said the club's discussions with Bartel were similar to discussions had with other players.

"The conversations that we've had with Jimmy are no different really – everyone has their specific set of circumstances," Scott said. 

"I would've thought it's self-evident that you've got a champion like Jimmy Bartel that says 'I'm contemplating my future, and if my future means I'm going to play every week in the VFL next year, that wouldn't be ideal for me'. 

"(That’s) hard to argue with."