Concern over player congestion at games has risen to almost frenzied levels over the past few rounds, with some commentators even calling for the introduction of zones to reduce the number of players around the ball.

But Evans said the Laws of the Game Committee (Joel Bowden, Brett Burton, Wayne Campbell, Michael Christian, Rodney Eade, Tom Harley, Hayden Kennedy, Leigh Matthews, Michael Sexton, Beau Waters, John Worsfold and Evans as chairman) was best placed to protect the game's interests.

"I think you need to respect the role of the Laws of the Game Committee. That is the greatest debating table around, and they look at health factors of the game," Evans said at the launch of the 2014 International Rules Series on Wednesday. 

"The fans tell us that they like the game to be tough and contested and they like exciting passages of play, exciting runs, exciting goals and exciting marks. 

"So long as our game produces those things it will be in a good state.

"But the Laws of Game Committee is a collection of experts selected from around the industry to debate the health of the game."

AFL.com.au has canvassed a range of high-profile football identities for their take on the state of the competition.

Here is what they said:

Scott Pendlebury
"I like congestion, because I'm not the fastest bloke going around and it helps me stay near the footy. I've heard all the arguments ... if you start getting into zones and things like that, you're probably going to have 20 umpires as well policing it. We're only five rounds into the season."
  
"It always sorts itself out. The Geelong-Hawthorn game looked pretty good to me. The game is in great shape and I'd love to leave it sit."

"I reckon if we go back to round three, four or five of every season we have these types of debates about the game and how it's evolving. 

"It's difficult because there are plenty out there that perhaps want the game to return to past years and what we had. But there's plenty of excitement about our current game as it sits. 

"We've got a lot of people, coaches, players, administrators at AFL level that will look into what's best for our game. 

"That will happen over the course of time, but (calls for change are) a little bit dramatic at the moment because it's so early in the season. Just let the game evolve for a little while and see how it all unfolds."

"The saddle's back. People are being jumped on on the ground. Being ridden and jumped on by two or three, and the ball can't get out.

"Clearly they'll blow for the ball-up, but they're not paying the obvious free kicks. Hence the term 'the rolling maul'. And the amount of arms that are being taken out, chopping arms ... to be honest I don't know what a free kick is or isn't anymore."

"To my mind, and I might be a little bit different to some people, but the footy I'm watching, especially the good games, I think it's a little more spread than it has been in previous seasons. I see forwards ahead of the ball a lot more than we had, say, two years ago. I see some teams trying to possess the ball a bit more, which I'm sure is a response to the lower interchange numbers. It's common sense that if you change something, there will be a reaction.

"I would move forward slowly when it comes to changing the game. I tend to think the game's in very, very good shape. I might have the blinkers on, but when I watch footy of 15 years ago, I'd take today's footy anytime.

"But without sounding completely altruistic, I feel I've got a responsibility to coach a football team that plays an attractive game of footy. Sure, we want to win. But we think the two things go hand in hand. I sense that there's a little bit too much focus on the poor games at the moment and not enough focus on the really good games.

"I'm not in the camp, where some people appear to be, that want to talk the game down. I don't understand people that love the game trying to talk it down. I think the game is fantastic to watch. But if the lawmakers choose to change it, then we'll adapt as best we can. I certainly won't be fighting against it."

"I think the game is in good shape, I think there is a really good balance between offence and defence. I think offence is now challenging the defence which has controlled the past three or four years in particular – we're seeing the advent of some offensive strategies that are testing the game, testing the rules, testing the way it is played."

On congestion: "I think some games look ugly and some games look great. Yesterday's game [Hawthorn v Geelong] was a showpiece. It was exactly what we want and there were 36 people on the field at one time.

"If we can get sides better and playing more like those two teams, the competition would be a lot healthier."

On rule changes: "Any proposal that comes up, they'll trial and go through the pros and cons of it all, and ultimately there's a lot of people on the field and if you took a few off the field, it would open the game right up, there's no question.

"They'll sort that out. It's not up to me. I've got to beat Collingwood this week."

On congestion: "It's no concern from our (GWS) point of view, but I can understand that there's some games you look at and walk away thinking 'where's it at?'

"But over the period of a season I think it sorts itself out."

On rule changes: "In terms of zoning, because we have such a big field, it's not like soccer, it's very hard to monitor that. But again, I reinforce, I think the game sorts itself out.

"When there's a week or two of some ugly footy, I reckon the next week we have some fantastic footy. Look at the Port Adelaide-West Coast game. Look at the Hawthorn-Geelong game. Top sides, there is some outstanding footy being played.

"Every now and again there's going to be some games that probably don't suit the supporter, but that's the way it goes."

"I think everyone just needs to take a Bex. Per capita, (the AFL) is the biggest and most successful sport in the world, the footy's unreal. 

"OK, it's going through a phase at the moment. But I look at the draft that's coming up. There's half a dozen guys who are six-foot-five, six-foot-six, it might be 'long bombs to Snake' in a year's time. 

"There are plenty of things Mark (Evans) is thinking about, whether it be zones or whether you have 16 players on the ground – all those things are good debating points. 

"But I think you'll see the game loosen up. The first month of football, everyone's trained to the minute, the coaches have been disciplining them for the last six months, (but) it opens up usually."

"Not really. I mean, the games change so quickly. We think they change every couple of weeks depending on who you play. We don't structure up the same way each week.

"It's a tough game, that's all I can say. It feels like it's getting tougher, maybe because I'm getting older."

"I think so. I think everyone should take a deep breath. We'll see throughout the year that the game will change so many times. With that, we're unsure what will happen. We'll make sure that we're changing, hopefully for the better."

"The game feels pretty quick, and with the rotations coming down, I think there's probably been enough rule changes for now."

"The way it's going at the moment, I'm sure over the next decade it'll change again so I don't think there are any major concerns in terms from what I can see. I wouldn't mind everyone just leaving the game as it is for a few years, that'd be nice, but that's for the powers-that-be to decide I suppose."

"I think the game's in good shape. There's always going to be different trends throughout the years and this is just another one. It'll change next year and it'll change the year after. You go with it, you adapt and you move on."