Commanders create 'hellacious backfield' in latest mock draft

Hampton led the ACC with 1,660 yards rushing last year and put up 3,565 yards with 36 touchdowns in three seasons with the Tar Heels. He also had 635 yards and four receiving touchdowns in his college career.

Of course Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty, the draft’s top-ranked running back, had more yards (5,631) and touchdowns (56) than Hampton, but there’s a toughness to the latter’s game that Washington fans, especially those old enough to remember Hall of Fame running back John Riggins, can appreciate.

NFL Network’s Lance Zierlein calls the 6-foot-1, 221-pound prospect  a “high-volume battering ram with a three-ingredient recipe of size, strength and aggression.” while adding, “He runs like a downhill truck whose brake lines have been cut.” Of course, Zierlein has concerns about Hampton’s downhill running style, saying Hampton “absorbs rare levels of heavy contact that could create durability or longevity issues if he doesn’t learn to pick and choose his battles.”

Absorbing contact wasn’t an issue in North Carolina. Per Pro Football Focus. Hampton’s 1,222 yards after contact were second-most in the FBS last season. By comparison, Washington’s Brian Robinson Jr. ranked 23rd among NFL running backs with 421 yards after contact (YAC) on 187 carries last year.

No wonder Tice and McDonald are so keen on putting Hampton in a backfield with the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, quarterback Jayden Daniels. Daniels averaged six yards per rush for a team-high 891 yards last season, but the team would much rather give those carries to a player like Hampton.