Fantasy Football RB Rankings: Draft James Cook Or Omarion Hampton?

James Cook and Omarion Hampton are both being drafted as RB2s this fantasy season. Hampton's value has been on the rise as of late, and we don't see that slowing down anytime soon. Cook is still more expensive, but his value has cooled off from where it was at the end of last fantasy season. We are going to let you know which one of these backs you should draft at value and straight up.

RB James Cook, Buffalo Bills

ADP: RB13 Overall 31

The Case For Cook

There is a lot to like about Cook. At 25 years old, he's coming off the best fantasy season of his career and plays in a dominant Buffalo Bills offense. We know the Bills' offense is going to once again be near the top of the league, giving Cook opportunities to pile up points. The same goes for all the projected positive game scripts they should be in, as the team projected by Las Vegas to dominate the AFC East like they've been doing year after year.

The reason Cook saw his fantasy value skyrocket last season was because he rushed for 16 touchdowns. That was a significant jump from his career high of two rushing TDs. He also rushed for 1,009 yards and caught 32 passes for 258 yards and two TDs. His only real shortcoming as a fantasy back in his first two seasons was his ability to score TDs, and he solved that issue last year in Year 3. If he can just continue on his current trajectory, he should once again be great.

The Case Against Cook

It's not crazy to come to the conclusion that his 2024 touchdown explosion could end up being an outlier stat. It's possible that two rushing touchdowns may not be the norm either, but 16 was such a huge increase that it's tough to expect him to repeat that. Even if he scores 10 TDs this season, it would be a huge knock to his fantasy value.

James Cook sat out of practice to start the week and said the reason was ‘business’

He’s still looking for a new deal, but reports have said the 2 sides are not close.

This has given more 1st team reps to RB Ray Davis…
— SAL VETRI (@SalVetriDFS) August 8, 2025

There is also a strong belief that second-year running back Ray Davis could see an increased role this season. The coaching staff has raved about him, and we saw him emerge last season as a serious factor. He ended up handling 113 carries, getting 19 TDs, and scoring six TDs. If his role is going to increase and make this backfield more of a committee, then it will inevitably come at the expense of Cook.

RB Omarion Hampton, Los Angeles Chargers

ADP: RB17 Overall 44

The Case For Hampton

Hampton is an uber-talented first-round running back who is set to run behind a massively improved offensive line in an offense that is expected to be one of the most run-heavy in the league.

His main competition for carries in the Los Angeles Chargers backfield was Najee Harris, but he injured his eye with fireworks on July 4 and has yet to return to practice. Now, we have no idea when he's coming back. This is also his first year in a new system and is likely falling far behind. now.

Our assumption was always that Harris would probably start the season as the lead back in Week 1, in about a 60/40 split. Then Hampton would chip away and ultimately take over the starting job later in the season. Now, the injury has opened the door for Hampton to get a stranglehold on the starting job this summer and never look back. It's clear why his stock has been steadily rising for months

Omarion Hampton: was likely to overtake Najee Harris for the lead role anyway, might happen sooner now.

Ranks 10th all-time in the Rookie Super Model since 2017.

73% of comps in model posted a top-12 finish before Year 3.

This is an RB1 profile, y'all. pic.twitter.com/Kp4EAU2WPN
— Dwain McFarland (@dwainmcfarland) July 21, 2025

The Case Against Hampton

There isn't a lot not to like here. Our only real concerns are that he's a rookie and we haven't seen him on an NFL field yet, and there is still a chance Harris shows up to camp tomorrow and ends up having a much larger role than we are hoping for. Otherwise, it's wheels up on Hampton.

Omarion Hampton Vs. James Cook Verdict

At value, Hampton is the much better option. If you can pass on Cook and grab a player at another position like Jayden Daniels, Joe Burrow, or Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and get Hampton more than a full round later, it's a slam dunk pick. With that said, if I had to take one of these players straight up, I'm still going with Hampton. He's going to finish in the RB5 to RB10 range this year and has RB1 overall upside. Cook doesn't have that upside and will finish behind Hampton this season.