There have been some big name departures from the West Coast Eagles of late, but dual All-Australian ruckman Dean Cox will not be one of them after signing a four-year deal with the club.

Cox, 26, has played 145 games with the Eagles since making his debut in 2001 after coming off the rookie list. His resume is tremendous including the 2006 premiership and being named All-Australian in 2005 and 06.

He will also be a vice-captain under Darren Glass for the first time this year and he is excited about the new contract that will most likely keep him with the Eagles until he retires.

"I am delighted. The position the club is in now is exciting with a new young group and I'm glad to be part of it for another four years. I was rapt when I was drafted to West Coast and I will be just as happy to end my career here," Cox said.

"The length of the contract will mean I'll most probably be an Eagle for life. A player plays because they love playing footy and that hasn't changed for me since I was on the rookie list to now being an eight, nine-year player. The money factor was never an issue in me signing."

Cox was originally rookie-listed by the Eagles in 2000 and has achieved everything he hoped for in his career, but he is still hungry for more success.

"What I wanted when I started my AFL career was to get the best out of myself and to be in a successful side," Cox said.

"We won a premiership in 2006, but I still want to have sustained success and win another couple before my career is over."

Despite surpassing Michael Gardiner as the best ever West Coast big man, Cox admits he still has weaknesses in his all-round game that he hopes to iron out.

"Going through the years and developing my career at East Perth under Tony Micale to start with, then when I started at West Coast, Michael Gardiner was the No. 1 ruckman and he played in a similar way to me. I modelled how I trained and played on him, but there's still areas I can improve on."

"One thing I've worked hard on is to be able to take a rest from the ruck and have an impact forward. To spend some time in a forward pocket is something I'd like to do more of."

While the loss of Brownlow medallists Chris Judd and Ben Cousins will be a blow to the Eagles, Cox is excited by the young talent coming through the club.

"A lot of the players over the last couple of years like Matt Rosa and Matt Priddis have taken massive steps and we still have the likes of (Daniel) Kerr and (Tyson) Stenglein here," he said.

"From working with them over the summer, I'm delighted to be part of the group we have. Chris and Ben will be missed, but we have some exciting players to step into that void."

His coach, John Worsfold, was equally delighted with the news he would have the star ruckman at his disposal for the foreseeable future.

"It was very important to have him signed up as he's one of our leaders and top players. It was a priority for us and I'm delighted that we've got a great result," Worsfold said.

"I was never nervous that Dean might leave and was confident he would stay as he is aware of what opportunities still present for him here. I'm sure Dean is pleased to have it over with so he can worry about this season ahead."