A second look at the Chargers’ Omarion Hampton pick puts value in question

On June 8, 2026, Yahoo Sports revisited the Los Angeles Chargers’ 2025 first-round decision to draft Omarion Hampton at No. 22 overall, framing the pick as a potential misstep in hindsight. The central critique was not that Hampton lacked NFL-ready production potential, but that his rookie season did not translate into the kind of immediate value teams hope for when using a late first-round slot on a running back.

Hampton’s 2025 NFL regular season statistics were modest by first-round standards and were shaped by availability. Yahoo cited that he missed eight games due to injury and produced 124 carries for 545 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in nine appearances. Those totals match publicly available season logs, including his 124 carries and 545 yards.

The re-draft argument went beyond Hampton’s output and tried to answer a harder question. Yahoo Sports referenced a Bleacher Report redraft by writer Gary Davenport, suggesting that in a re-ranking of the class, Hampton would have slipped out of the first round. In that scenario, Davenport’s preferred alternative was Xavier Watts, a Notre Dame safety who was selected in the third round by the Atlanta Falcons.

The comparison points to roster-building tradeoffs that show up every spring. Watts, taken at No. 96 overall, represented a different kind of investment than the Chargers made with their No. 22 selection. In the same discussion, Yahoo suggested that the Chargers could have improved their secondary sooner if they were prioritizing premium impact positions rather than taking a running back early, especially given what it characterized as depth at the position.

The Chargers’ original selection process, at least as they explained it, emphasized fit and conviction. In the team’s own draft coverage, Los Angeles described Hampton as a high-end offensive playmaker at No. 22, and quoted head coach Jim Harbaugh describing Hampton’s size and ability to run, score, and contribute as a major part of the ground game. That context helps explain why a team could view Hampton as a franchise-tilting piece even before his rookie season ever began.

Still, value is measured in results, not intent. Yahoo’s critique also looked at later-round fallout from the draft night. It pointed to Los Angeles selecting R.J. Mickens in the sixth round and Trikweze Bridges in the seventh, noting that Bridges did not make the Chargers’ 53-man roster and was later added elsewhere. Dallas News reported Bridges failed to make the Chargers’ 53-man roster and that the Cowboys used a waiver claim to add him.

For the Chargers, the immediate watch-item is simple: can Hampton stay on the field and turn opportunity into production in 2026? Yahoo described him as positioned to lead the backfield if healthy, and that expectation is now part of the stakes attached to this pick’s reputation. If Hampton’s role expands and his efficiency improves, the argument that the No. 22 choice was a mistake will look less persuasive. If not, the discussion will keep circling back to the same theme, premium draft value spent, then delayed by injuries, while other players from the class established clearer early trajectories.