The Dolphins were world beaters on the offensive side of the ball when they were humming. From the start of 2022 through the end of 2023, Miami was a top-5 unit in yards per play, yards per game, and red zone efficiency. The skill positions players were great, but the trigger man wasn’t nearly of the caliber to what McDaniel now has access to, hence the appeal.
Should I Draft Omarion Hampton in Fantasy Football?
I buy that. This is going to be a potent offense, but not nearly as concentrated as those Dolphin teams were. Initially, we thought that was only going to be true through the air, but it sounds as if we have to now worry about the ground as well:
“Bad news, fantasy owners. Good news is I see all three of those guys producing at a very high level. Bad news is I can’t tell you which games those are.”
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McDaniel went on to use the two worst words in fantasy during this interview (“hot hand”), further twisting the knife that he had just put in us Omarion Hampton truthers.
Is this coach speak or is it actionable?
We won’t know until the games count, but there certainly does seem to be fire to this smoke. Much was made of McDaniel wanting Keaton Mitchell on this roster and it’s a perfect fit: high-end speed with explosion potential on every run (posted the top 10-yard sprint splits at the 2023 combine).
Mitchell was never going to be unleashed in Baltimore and while Omarion Hampton is still comfortably atop this depth chart, he did miss two months last season with an injury and didn’t have a 30-yard gain after returning.
Hampton’s versatility has managers hoping for a De’Von Achane type of season, but McDaniel didn’t cut Achane loose until after the offense declined (as a rookie, 20.8% of his touches came via the receptions and in the two years since, that rate is up to 24.7%).
Hampton can be special like Achane, I think that’s in his profile, but I don’t think we can realistically draft him in 2026 with hopes of a true spike season. McDaniel has mentioned perfecting foot work and mechanics with Herbert, something that is great for this offense as a whole, but RB routes aren’t usually prioritized on those quick pass plays where motion is happening all over the place in an effort to find mismatches for the receivers.
I still think Hampton is a fine pick. Mitchell is talented, but he’s never hit 60 rush attempts in a season and he has more games played than targets earned across three seasons.
Kimani Vidal is an interesting inclusion here. He carried 155 times for this squad last season, but he’s a sixth round pick without the tools that the other two have and no tie to McDaniel that makes me think that he’s anything more than a change of pace option.
My read is that this removes Hampton from the top-10 conversation for me (I think you get safer floors from Derrick Henry and Javonte Williams), but that’s simply a shift within a tier, not a tier change. Hampton’s price tag is currently a little rich for my blood (mid-Round 2), but that’s more because of my belief in other players in that range (namely Chase Brown and AJ Brown) than it is a knock on Hampton.
Mitchell is draftable because we want pieces of this offense, but I’d be surprised if there were weeks at a time where he’s providing flex worthy production with Hampton healthy. To that end, I’m not sold on the contingent value being elite due to the checkered health history of Mitchell: a Hampton injury, for me, would increase the stock more from baseline for Vidal than Mitchell.
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There’s a real chance that this is just August fodder and that this is the Hampton show. I’m open to that idea and that’s why I’m not making a significant move in my rankings, but this is a quote that confirms what we all assumed to be true when McDaniel took this job: speed kills.
Justin Herbert, at cost, is the Charger I want most and I don’t see that changing at any point this preseason
Kyle Soppe’s RB Fantasy Rankings 2026
- Bijan Robinson | ATL
- Jahmyr Gibbs | DET
- James Cook III | BUF
- Ashton Jeanty | LV
- Jonathan Taylor | IND
- Christian McCaffrey | SF
- De’Von Achane | MIA
- Saquon Barkley | PHI
- Chase Brown | CIN
- Derrick Henry | BAL
- Javonte Williams | DAL
- Kenneth Walker III | KC
- Jeremiyah Love | ARI
- Omarion Hampton | LAC
- D’Andre Swift | CHI
- Travis Etienne Jr. | NO
- Breece Hall | NYJ
- Kyren Williams | LAR
- Josh Jacobs | GB
- David Montgomery | HOU
- Cam Skattebo | NYG
- Bhayshul Tuten | JAX
- TreVeyon Henderson | NE
- Bucky Irving | TB
- Chuba Hubbard | CAR
- Jaylen Warren | PIT
- Jordan Mason | MIN
- Jadarian Price | SEA
- Quinshon Judkins | CLE
- Jacory Croskey-Merritt | WAS
- Kenny Gainwell | TB
- Rhamondre Stevenson | NE
- Tony Pollard | TEN
- RJ Harvey | DEN
- Zach Charbonnet | SEA
- Rico Dowdle | PIT
- Blake Corum | LAR
- Kyle Monangai | CHI
- Chris Rodriguez Jr. | JAX
- Tyler Allgeier | ARI
- Rachaad White | WAS
- Aaron Jones Sr. | MIN
- J.K. Dobbins | DEN
- Isiah Pacheco | DET
- Nick Singleton | TEN
- James Conner | ARI
- Kimani Vidal | LAC
- Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG
- Jaylen Wright | MIA
- Woody Marks | HOU
