Former Executive Links Broncos to ‘High-Volume’ Copy of 5-Time Pro Bowler

The Denver Broncos’ next big move could come in the 2025 draft. It may very well solve their greatest post-free agency question. Amid the Broncos’ overt interest in the incoming crop of running backs, Omarion Hampton continues to build steam.

Hampton racked up 1,660 yards and 15 touchdowns on 281 carries for the North Carolina Tar Heels in 2024. It was his second straight season leading the ACC in all three categories.

Former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum, now an analyst for ESPN, sees a fit.

“You’re going to see over 20 running backs drafted. The depth and the quality – like in prior years, we’d be talking about Cam Scattebo more. … There’s so many guys we could talk about,” Tannenbaum said in a teleconference for the “Orange and Blue Today” podcast on March 26. “Hampton’s speed, size, and his ability to catch, I think [Broncos head coach Sean Payton]’s gonna have a tough time passing that guy up. I think he’s gonna see Alvin Kamara.”

The Broncos have been pegged as a team to watch in a potential trade up for Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty. The depth of the class could afford them the luxury of waiting. It is the same scenario and strategy that unfolded in 2024, leading to Bo Nix at No. 12.

Hampton plays a different position than Nix. His potential addition could have a similar impact, taking pressure off Nix and the defense.

Hampton is bigger than Kamara, the New Orleans Saints star who is a five-time Pro Bowler.

The incoming rookie is also not the receiver that Kamara – a third-round pick by Payton’s Saints in 2017 who was also the Offensive Rookie of the Year – is. Still, the versatility he could bring to the Broncos’ backfield is why the comparison fits, especially given what Payton is looking for.

Omarion Hampton Not Among Broncos’ Confirmed Visits

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein noted in Hampton’s pre-draft profile that the back is not the shiftiest back and sometimes lacks vision, but the 6-foot, 220-pound back is a “tone-setting future starter.”

“High-volume battering ram with a three-ingredient recipe of size, strength and aggression.  Hampton is a linear runner lacking creativity and wiggle, but once the gas is engaged, he runs like a downhill truck whose brake lines have been cut. He has the base, balance and power to batter tacklers and reignite runs after contact but he fails to recognize alternative run lanes that offer easier paths and more yardage,” Zierlein wrote in his pre-draft profile.

“Needs to work on his pass protection but can create positive plays on swing passes and screens. Hampton is a tone-setting future starter who can handle a heavy workload, but he absorbs rare levels of heavy contact that could create durability or longevity issues if he doesn’t learn to pick and choose his battles.”

The Broncos boast a top-notch training staff that is part of the reason their free agency haul – headlined by three players with extended injury histories in Dre Greenlaw, Evan Engram, and Talanoa Hufanga – has still received praise.

However, the Broncos have yet to show interest in Hampton as they have others.

“9NEWS has also confirmed visits for running backs Quinshon Judkins of Ohio State, Kansas State’s DJ Giddens, Texas’ Jaydon Blue,” 9News’ Mike Klis wrote on March 28.

Broncos RB Stable 4-Deep

The Broncos are in an interesting spot. They still have four backs under contract for 2025 even after letting Javonte Williams (Dallas Cowboys) leave in free agency.

Second-year backs Audric Estime and Blake Watson join fellow incumbents Jaleel McLaughlin and Tyler Badie. The group’s skill set is fairly role-specific. Estime is an early-down runner while the others profile as change-of-pace backs in a completed Broncos backfield.

However, Payton has praised the contributions of versatile, “Joker”-style backs like Kamara.

“A ‘Joker,’ now, can be a tight end or a running back that has exceptional – we were spoiled here [in New Orleans] when you think about it, all right? You had Reggie [Bush], you had Jimmy Graham, Jeremy Shockey, Darren Sproles, Alvin Kamara. Those are interior, either tight ends or running backs,” Payton told Kay Adams on “Up & Adams” in February.

“They have to be elite receivers that play tight end or running back, and then you get the matchups. And we had quite a few of them here, because you’re getting 2-high defense, and you have to work the inside.”

Hampton could give the Broncos what they are looking for and something Payton is very familiar with: a true star at the RB position.