The Los Angeles Chargers paid a major price to add their most formidable offensive weapon last offseason, selecting Omarion Hampton with the 22nd overall pick in the NFL Draft.
At the time, the pick seemed like a solid gamble. For the most part, it still does. Hampton was absolutely dynamic in college at the University of North Carolina, and his burst and pass-catching skill-set should quickly endear him to new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel. But injuries severely limited him during his rookie campaign. He played in just nine games, posting 545 yards and four touchdowns.
His exclusion from NFL Spinzone's recent rankings of the top 11 running backs in the AFC, therefore, is a fair judgement. But it highlights a truth Hampton and the Chargers must face in 2026.
In order for Los Angeles' gamble on Hampton to pay off, Hampton must stay healthy and enter the top half of the league's starting running backs in 2026. When you pay that sort of price for a player at that position, it's truly the only option.
Omarion Hampton must take a major step forward in Year 2
It's unfair to blame the misfortunes of 2025 on Hampton. But it's not unfair to expect more in 2026.
The Chargers now have an offensive coordinator will be capable of maximizing Hampton's speed in the run game. McDaniel often turns towards outside-zone to establish the pass, and Hampton certainly has big-play potential in this sort of scheme. If he can stay healthy, we should see a major season from him.
But if Hampton's production stays relatively pedestrian in 2026 or he's limited by injuries, the Chargers will face another year without top-20 production out of their first-round pick. Hampton isn't in the same tier as the top running backs in the AFC like Derrick Henry, Jonathan Taylor, and James Cook. He doesn't need to be.
But Hampton is surpassed in Spinzone's rankings by players like Tony Pollard, who surpassed the 1,000-yard threshold last season with the Tennessee Titans, and TreVeyon Henderson, who operated as the RB2 for the New England Patriots for much of his rookie campaign. It's not even worth arguing against those placements right now.
But when you spend a first-round pick on a running back, the expectation, for better or worse, is that they're able to immediately provide you with top-tier production out of the backfield. It's the nature of the position, and it's the nature of contracts handed out to these selections.
Hampton should be poised to deliver that in 2026. But NFL Spinzone's rankings make clear where the pressure ultimately lies.
Add us as a preferred source on Google