The Kick and Punt Returners Who Can Flip Return Yardage Leagues in 2026

New Kickoff Return Rules Make These Top Kick & Punt Returners Essential

If it seemed like you were seeing more kick returns and bigger plays last year, that’s because you were.

Kickoff return rate jumped from 32.8% in 2024 to 74.5% last fall, creating a lot more return-yardage scoring for fantasy leagues.

The league also produced 86 returns of 40+ yards, up from 59 in 2024. That spike made returners even more valuable.

Why the increase? The NFL tweaked its kickoff rules again heading into 2025 by moving touchbacks to the 35-yard line in an effort to increase kickoffs.

So which players stand to benefit most, and which ones can add value on punt returns, too? Let’s dig in.

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Six Big-Play Kick Returners You Can’t Ignore

These kick returners can make an immediate impact in return-yardage leagues.

Chimere Dike, WR, Titans

Dike delivered some of the best return stats in the league as a rookie. He ranked second to KaVontae Turpin in kick returns (62) and kick-return yards (1,588). He also ranked 13th in punt returns (23), second in punt-return yards (398), and first in punt-return average (17.3). Dike added a pair of punt-return TDs.

He led the league in total return yards at 1,986.

Dike also caught 48 of 74 targets for 423 yards and 4 TDs. That production may decline with Carnell Tate and Wan’Dale Robinson joining the team. But Dike’s return yardage makes him a potential weekly starter in heavy return-yardage leagues.

KaVontae Turpin, WR, Cowboys

Turpin has been one of the league’s best returners for years, leading the NFL in 2024 with 904 kick-return yards at 33.5 yards per opportunity.

He nearly doubled that yardage total in 2025 with 1,814 kick-return yards. His average dipped to 26.3 per opportunity, but league-leading volume kept Turpin near the top of the return rankings with an NFL-high 69 kick returns plus 10 punt returns.

Turpin also caught 26 of 38 targets for 396 yards and 2 TDs, giving him enough receiving juice to become a weekly starter in some return-yardage leagues.

Zachariah Branch, WR, Falcons

Branch was a prolific college returner, averaging 27.3 returns per season and earning Freshman All-American honors as a return specialist.

He appears poised to win the team’s kick- and punt-return jobs over Olamide Zaccheaus, and his 4.35 speed plus college track record should help him lock them down early in camp. 

Branch opened camp as the team’s No. 4 WR, which gives him some receiving upside on a thin group with Jahan Dotson and Zaccheaus currently ahead of him. That could set up a situation similar to Dike’s last year.

A rookie handling both return roles plus WR4 usage is exactly the cheap return-yardage swing worth taking at the end of drafts.

Ray Davis, RB, Bills

Davis’s 30.4 yards per kick return led all 32 returners with 20+ returns in 2025. A 97-yard TD return in Week 12 boosted that average.

All 31 of his kick returns came from Week 8 on, with Davis cementing the full-time job in Week 12.

His 2025 success sets him up to retain duties from the start of 2026. Davis also could hold standalone offensive value if James Cook misses any time. That certainly makes this guy worth a roster spot in return-yardage leagues. 

Malik Washington, WR, Dolphins

Washington is another player with potential receiving fantasy value who handles a large volume of returns.

His 36 kick returns last season ranked sixth in the NFL, and he went for 965 yards on those. He also handled 20 punt returns for 260 yards and a TD.

The Dolphins' WR room has plenty of questions. Washington will compete with Jalen Tolbert, Tutu Atwell, Chris Bell, Caleb Douglas, and more for snaps. If he retains the return role and earns a top-three WR role on the team, Washington could be a fantasy contributor. 

Miami does not need to feature him on offense for him to matter, though. Those return totals already give him bye-week appeal.

Charlie Jones, WR, Bengals

Unlike the other guys on this list, Jones presents no receiving value. He has totaled just 8 receptions through three seasons, including 0 in 2025. But the return production alone makes him worth rostering in some leagues.

Jones ranked fourth in the NFL with 42 kick returns, turning them into 1,084 yards and a TD. He was one of only six players to score on a kick return last season, taking one 98 yards in Week 9.

Treat Jones as a return specialist to use when the Bengals face a high-powered offense that could score (and kick) often.

More Kick Returners to Know

• LeQuint Allen
• Barion Brown
• Rasheen Ali
• Kaden Wetjen
• Trevor Etienne
• Kene Nwangwu

Four Punt Returners Who Matter in Fantasy

Rashid Shaheed, WR, Seahawks

Shaheed is a premium option in return-yardage leagues after posting 23 punt returns for 339 yards and a TD last season, good for sixth in the NFL in punt-return yards.

Shaheed also added 15 kick returns for 447 yards last season. Fourteen of those came after Shaheed was traded to the Seahawks, indicating Shaheed could get even more kick returns this season.

Shaheed was the only player to score on a kick and a punt return TD last year.

He also profiles as Seattle’s No. 2 WR and sits as one of our sleepers this year, even without return yardage included.

Shahee’s three-year, $51 million extension this offseason shows how much the team values him. He should be an every-week starter in return yardage leagues.

Marvin Mims Jr., WR, Broncos

Mims led the league in punt-return yards last season, taking 29 returns for 452 yards and a TD. The Broncos' second-ranked defense helped him rank fourth in the league in total returns. That defense should be strong again, allowing Mims to retain high volume this season.

He also operated as the No. 1 kick returner, handling 25 kicks for 658 yards. 

Mims will have trouble improving on his modest 32-322-1 receiving line from last season after the Broncos acquired Jaylen Waddle. Even without Waddle, Mims has yet to average more than 2.5 receptions per game for a season.

Still, Mims's return ability -- with some offensive snaps -- makes him worth a roster spot.

Parker Washington, WR, Jaguars

Washington tied for the league lead with two punt return TDs last season among 25 returns for 341 yards. He also handled three kick returns for 75 yards.

The bigger draw is Washington’s offensive role. After Travis Hunter’s LCL tear in Week 7, Washington averaged 14.9 PPR points per game from Week 8 on, ranking 16th among WRs over that span.

Washington kept his return duties while delivering that WR16 average in the latter half in the season. There hasn’t been an indication that the team would move away from Washington, even if he emerges as the team’s No. 1 WR. That combination of returns and potential top-20 WR fantasy production moves Washington up draft boards in return yardage leagues.

Jaylin Noel, WR, Texans

Noel was the primary punt and kick returner for the Texans as a rookie last season. He ranked 15th in the league in kick returns (29) and second in punt returns (31). That ranked him fourth in the NFL in total returns, behind KaVontae Turpin, Chimere Dike, and Myles Price.

Noel’s 1,134 return yards ranked only 10th among returners, though. The lack of efficiency hurt Noel a bit, but that could improve in 2026. Noel was an elite punt returner in college at Iowa State. His 15.2 average per return in his final season (2024) ranked 10th nationally among those with 10+ returns (111 total).

He certainly could improve as a returner in his second NFL season after showcasing elite talent in college.

He should also benefit offensively from Christian Kirk moving on to the 49ers. Noel drew 13 of his 35 season targets (37.1%) in the two games Kirk missed last year. An increased offensive role plus both return jobs could make him regularly usable in return-yardage leagues.

Additional Punt Returners to Keep on Your Radar

• Khalil Shakir
• Myles Price
• Skyy Moore
• Devin Duvernay
• Derius Davis
• Anthony Gould

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