Packers Morning Buzz: Allen Lazard, Jake Kumerow hailed as 'unheralded ballers'

Welcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com.

We'll start with ESPN's Cameron Wolfe presenting the NFL’s "Quarter 2 unheralded ballers," the no-name players who seemingly come out of nowhere to deliver clutch performances. Packers receivers Allen Lazard and Jake Kumerow make the list for stepping in for the injured Davante Adams and producing a combined 18 catches for 268 yards in the last three games.

Wolfe (with an assist from Packers beat writer Rob Demovsky) writes:

Why it matters: Forced into action because of Davante Adams’ Week 4 turf toe injury, Kumerow (a second-year undrafted player) and Lazard (an undrafted rookie) have stepped up to the plate big time, helping make the 7-1 Packers one of the NFC’s elite teams.

“I really am proud of the way that Jake has played and Allen has played,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said.

Adams should return sooner than later, but the production of Kumerow and Lazard in a time of need could have a lasting impact on the Packers' offense.

You can read the entire story here:

Tom Silverstein explores how losing Davante Adams turned out to be a positive development for Aaron Rodgers and the Packers' offense:

The Packers passed on making any deadline deals but did make some roster moves:

The Packers' path to the No. 1 spot remains barred by three teams in the major national power rankings. Here's a sampling, topped by this from Dan Hanzus of NFL.com:

4 PACKERS (7-1)

Previous rank: No. 4

"They've turned that guy into a superstar." Those were the words of Around The NFL Podcast colleague Chris Wesseling as we watched Aaron Jones rumble to the end zone with the Packers' game-winning score on Sunday night against the Chiefs. There's so much to like about Green Bay right now, but Jones' ascent to legit dual-threat monster has opened up a surging Packers offense that was expected to suffer when receiver Davante Adams went on the shelf with a toe injury. With Adams out since Week 4, Aaron Rodgers and first-year coach Matt LaFleur have essentially turned Jones into a productive wide receiver. According to Next Gen Stats, Jones caught four of five targets aligned wide for 127 yards and a touchdown against the Chiefs. That's 53 more yards than the next-closest running back lining up out wide in a single game since the Next Gen era began in 2016. Good teams find a way to make the most of their personnel.

You can find the entire rankings here (followed by a few others):

The Aaron Jones hype train is picking up speed:

What a trio of passes for Rodgers in finishing off the Chiefs:

There certainly was no shortage of air time for the injured Chiefs quarterback Sunday night:

The Packers should feel right at home when they visit the Los Angeles Chargers:

Jim Owczarski provides a sneak peek at the Chargers:

The Packers will see a familiar face in the Chargers' secondary:

Former NFL quarterback Rich Gannon is touting Rodgers' MVP candidacy:

Where does Rodgers stand in the MVP race? NFL.com panelists discuss:

Packers legend Brett Favre spent a day with the 49ers:

That loss to the Chargers just keeps looking worse for coach Mike Nagy and the Bears:

And finally:

Contact Stu Courtney at (920) 431-8377 or scourtney@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @stucourt