One player many Los Angeles Chargers fans are excited to see this season is rookie running back Omarion Hampton, and for good reason. The Bolts' first-round pick was electric out of the backfield at UNC, rushing for 1,500-plus yards in each of his final two seasons for the Tar Heels. Interestingly enough, he averaged exactly 5.9 yards per carry and scored 15 rushing touchdowns in each of those years as well.
With Najee Harris out for an extended period of time with an eye injury, Hampton will now receive the bulk of snaps on offense earlier than expected. The Chargers signed veteran Nyheim Hines to fill the void for now, but Hampton is going to get the clear nod on offense.
However, the Chargers tried Hampton out on kick returns recently at practice, according to Daniel Popper of the Athletic.
"Rookie running back Omarion Hampton was working at kick returner during a special teams period. Hampton had a drop in 11-on-11 drills while working with the first-team offense. He was open on an angle route out of the backfield but could not handle the Herbert pass."
This isn't anything to be overly concerned or excited about, as teams usually have a group of skill players to catch kicks and punts regularly. It's worth noting that Hampton had just seven kick return opportunities in college for 151 yards, all of those coming in his freshman season.
The Chargers' main return man is Derius Davis, who handled the majority of those over the last two seasons. Unless something disastrous happens, Hampton will not be seeing the field on special teams.
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