"It's good to have it out of the way - we can now focus on team rather than individuals," said Dangerfield.
"I can now focus on just playing on footy.
"At the start of the year, I was leaning to (an end-of-season negotiation).
"But the speculation, the hype that generates has become a negative on the group.
"To get it out of the way and allow the club to focus on winning games of footy - rather than fielding questions about players' contracts - is about thinking for the club."
Dangerfield, 22, conceded that opportunities at rival clubs - Geelong was the keenest - had "come into calculations".
"That's the case with every player," he said, while downplaying the money factor in the bidding war for his signature.
"But there were plenty of reasons to stay.
"We are going to be a very successful team."
"I've signed for three years - at the end of that, you weigh that up," he said.