Brownlow spotlight on Smith as grand final looms

And a premiership would take it to another level again.

Smith has rarely been out of the headlines since sealing his trade to Geelong from the Western Bulldogs last year.

The league's most marketable player - and most followed with more than 391,000 Instagram fans - has starred on-field as the Cats' boom recruit.

And he has caused plenty of controversy, twice fined this year for flipping the bird at opposition supporters.

He was spoken to by league officials after a social media comment referencing illicit drug use and had to apologise for verbally abusing a female photographer.

Smith also won plenty of admirers last month when he bravely revealed he had previously spent time in a mental health facility.

It came as he was announced as a joint winner of the AFL Coaches Association player-of-the-year award with Gold Coast's Noah Anderson.

That prize is a strong indicator Smith will be around the mark in Brownlow voting, with Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos a narrow favourite in a tight betting market.

Adelaide captain Jordan Dawson and Suns pair Matt Rowell and Anderson are also in contention in what shapes as a five-player race.

Geelong teammates have no doubt what sets Smith apart on the field.

"It's his running ability. He's a very good in-game runner," Cats defender Zach Guthrie told AAP.

"His spread from the contest to get to the outside is elite.

"He works really hard on his game and it's great to see guys like that get some rewards for their efforts."

Smith quickly developed a strong partnership with fellow speedster Max Holmes this year and has been a key cog in the Cats' midfield machine.

If he claims the Brownlow, he would be Geelong's first winner since current captain Patrick Dangerfield in 2016.

While the Brownlow Medal is the competition's most coveted individual honour, Cats forward Tyson Stengle noted there is an even bigger prize on offer.

Geelong have reached their third grand final in six seasons and will take on reigning premiers the Brisbane Lions in Saturday's season decider.

"Yeah, Bailey should be up there," Stengle told AAP.

"Hopefully he can get the win but the real win is next Saturday, so we're going to focus on that."

Smith - or perhaps the Lions' 80-1 outsider Hugh McCluggage - could become the first man to win the Brownlow and premiership in the same year since Richmond's Dustin Martin in 2017.