OmarionHampton

News: 2 days agoHampton rushed 12 times for 43 yards and a touchdown and lost a fumble in the Chargers' 26-14 loss to the Cardinals on Sunday.

Spin: Hampton and the Chargers looked ready to roll early in the alarming loss, as the second-year back answered Arizona's opening-drive touchdown with a hard-charging eight-yard scoring run with 4:22 remaining in the first quarter. He was very quiet from that point forward, however, and his lost fumble at Arizona's 34-yard line on the following possession cost Los Angeles both a potential scoring opportunity and led to a Cardinals field goal. Hampton also was surprisingly shut out of any pass-catching opportunities, but he should have a good chance at a larger workload in a Week 2 divisional home clash against the Raiders next Sunday.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Hampton is primed for a breakout second season following an impressive but injury-shortened rookie campaign. The first-round pick was busy during nine appearances, averaging 13.8 carries and 3.9 targets. He scored five touchdowns, averaged 15.1 fantasy points per game (13th best) and ranked third among backs in forced missed tackle rate, per PFF. With Kimani Vidal and Keaton Mitchell as his primary competition, Hampton has a clear path to lead rusher duties in 2026, and his targets only figure to increase with Greg Roman out and Mike McDaniel in as the team's playcaller. Add in a much-improved offensive line with star tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater back healthy, and Hampton has nothing short of elite upside. Value him as a fringe RB1 with room for more.