His first five quarters of meaningful NFL action give Allen Lazard the appearance of a player that could legitimately contribute for the Green Bay Packers during the 2019 season, even once Davante Adams returns from a turf toe injury.

Since being inserted into the game in the fourth quarter in Week 6, Lazard has played 68 snaps on offense. He has seven catches for 107 yards and a touchdown.

His seven receptions include a 35-yard touchdown that sparked the Packers’ comeback against the Detroit Lions and a leaping 26-yard gain that set up a touchdown on Sunday against the Oakland Raiders.

A review of the snaps Lazard played Sunday revealed a player that can get open on his own and make catches no other player on the Packers roster could make.

On at least three plays, Lazard created separation against man-to-man coverage and was open but the ball went elsewhere. Cornerbacks respected his size and physicality and played some off coverage, and Lazard was quick enough in and out of breaks to get open. He also had a drop, but he ran a terrific route off the line and found the open space in the Cover-2 defense and had another explosive play within his grasp.

Later, he made up for the mistake, skying to make a ridiculous catch inside the 20-yard line against another Cover-2 defense. Lazard is 6-5 and can hit 38″ in the vertical leap, and he needed every bit of size and leaping ability to make the catch.

Allen Lazard with a FANTASTIC snag 😤 @AllenLazard pic.twitter.com/r78CmkvEvJ — The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) October 20, 2019

Aaron Rodgers trusted Lazard to go get the football, and that trust allowed Rodgers to throw it to a spot only Lazard could get. The second-year receiver went up, caught the football at its highest point, absorbed a hit and hung onto it through contact with the ground.

That’s the intriguing part of Lazard. His unique combination of size and physicality at the catch point makes him a power forward style of receiver, and the Packers don’t really have that on the roster currently.

On three of Lazard’s seven catches so far in 2019, he’s pushed upfield, turned back to the ball and made the reception in front of a trailing cornerback for an easy throw and catch. And twice he’s made contested catches in the scoring area for big plays. His massive catch radius makes life easier on the quarterback.

Lazard’s emergence could give coach Matt LaFleur more situational options at receiver. The Packers need their alpha pass-catcher back, and Adams might return soon, but the potential for Lazard to continue contributing shouldn’t be discounted. He’s talented, he’s different and he’s producing. The Packers might have something in No. 13.