Last Sunday marked the sixth consecutive game that the rookie RB out of North Carolina for the Los Angeles Chargers, Omarion Hampton, missed due to injury. He was hurt in a contest in week five against the Washington Commanders with an ankle injury.
The Chargers last week had the option to open the practice window for Hampton, but they opted not to. Hampton has been seen doing sideline work in his absence, and based on what head coach of the Chargers Jim Harbaugh said, it sounds like a return to action in week 13 for Hampton is plausible. The Chargers will be off this week with a bye.
Oct 5, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Chargers running back Omarion Hampton (8) breaks away from Washington Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu (4) as he carries the ball at SoFi Stadium. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Before Hampton went down with an injury, he was on the verge of an impressive rookie breakout season. In his last three games, he had 12 or more carries in each of those games and five or more receptions. Through those contests, he scored a touchdown in two of the games. His best outing over this stretch was against the New York Giants, where he had 12 carries for 128 yards and five catches for 37 yards. This took place in week four, and in STD and PPR format, he finished as RB7 for the week in fantasy points. This momentum will likely not pick up where it left off when Hampton initially returns. One, because of his injury, of course, and the other reason, because of the play of his replacement, RB Kimani Vidal.
Vidal, since he has taken over the Chargers’ backfield, has had some special performances. In three of his starts, he had 95 rushing yards or more with a TD in all three of these contests. His presence will lessen what Hampton can do upon coming back, especially out of the gates if he plays in week 13. This also works vice versa. With Hampton coming back, Vidal, who has been a starting-level player in fantasy, could then become unplayable. Fantasy managers who have Vidal on their roster need to have a plan in place for how to address Vidal’s role change. Whether that is replacing him with a flex player or swapping him for an RB off their bench or waiver wire, something will need to be done.
Nov 16, 2025; Madrid, Spain; Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. (36) carries the ball against the Miami Dolphins in the second quarter during the 2025 NFL Madrid Game at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
A couple of waiver-wire options to consider as potential replacements for Kimani Vidal during the Chargers’ bye week are Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. and Green Bay Packers running back Emanuel Wilson.
Rodriguez Jr. notably logged more carries than rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt last week. Against the Miami Dolphins, he had 15 carries for 79 yards. Packers RB Wilson filled in for RB1, Josh Jacobs, after he exited with a knee injury in the first half of the game last week against the New York Giants. Wilson had 11 rushes for 40 yards in the game and a touchdown. Jacobs is currently seen as week-to-week, which could end up making Wilson a short-term fix, whereas Rodriguez Jr. has the potential to be a long-term fix.
