ESSENDON has a long way to go before it re-signs Michael Hibberd, says Bombers CEO Xavier Campbell.

Hibberd, 26, is contracted until the end of 2017 but is unsure if he wants to stay at the Bombers after the ordeal of the supplements saga.

Melbourne looms as the likely destination for Hibberd if he decides to leave.

Campbell told ABC radio on Saturday he met with Hibberd for breakfast the day before the defender left for an overseas holiday, and had spoken to Hibberd's manager in the past week. He said he had "positive discussions" with both.

"We have a significant amount of work to do to retain Michael and to ensure that his engagement is there to make that commitment to the football club," Campbell said.

"I certainly don't think it's a foregone conclusion that he's going to Melbourne."

Fellow backman Michael Hurley is also contracted for next season and Campbell believes he will return to the club, after protracted negotiations.

"We've had discussions from well before the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) decision in January about an extension and those discussions have been ongoing for a pretty significant period of time," he said.

"I feel … quietly confident that we'll get Michael to recommit to the club.

"Those discussions, given the guys are overseas at the moment, won't be able to be formalised until they get back, and that's three or four weeks away."

Whether captain Jobe Watson wants to return is another issue. The 31-year-old is also under contract for 2017.

"Jobe's slightly different to the others," Campbell said.

"Jobe's obviously a different age to the others. Jobe's an incredibly intelligent guy, not to say the other guys aren't, but … we've got full confidence Jobe will work through a process himself, and that's what he's indicated to me.

"He knows how important he is to our football club, but he also knows that a strength of his resolve and his retention will need to be that he's in the right frame of mind."

Brent Stanton and Ben Howlett are both in the final year of their current deal.

"I feel like we'll get to a position where they'll be back in, but again, we're not trying to overtly rush that either," Campbell said.

Tayte Pears is the other banned player yet to officially make a decision. He may instead choose a new career path as a firefighter.