4 Fantasy Football Lottery Tickets to Draft (2026)

Football season is here, and that means fantasy football drafts are either underway or wrapping up. If you haven’t had yours yet, what are you waiting for!? By now you should be fully prepared and ready to click that draft button. But before you do, I’ve got a handful of lottery ticket running backs and wide receivers who could provide a serious return on investment relative to their average draft position (ADP).

Not all of these lotto tickets are the late-round targets you might be expecting. I wanted to cover most of the board because any pick can make you feel like you won the lottery.

Fantasy Football Lottery Tickets to Draft

Blake Corum (RB – LAR)

Most would agree that Corum has standalone value behind Kyren Williams. At his current ADP, he already provides great value as the backup. His snap share has risen since his rookie season and should continue to trend up.

It’s hard to ignore how Corum bested Williams in missed tackles forced per attempt, explosive run rate, and yards per carry, according to Fantasy Points Data Suite.

The Rams have every reason to keep using both running backs, which gives Corum a usable weekly floor. We’re buying the lottery ticket if Williams misses time.

If that happens, Corum would immediately be ranked as a back-end RB1 to top-end RB2, making this lottery ticket an instant winner.

Kenneth Gainwell (RB – TB)

Here’s a back who can pay out big dividends as the RB2 behind Bucky Irving. It makes sense for the Bucs to utilize Gainwell because they want to keep Irving healthy after getting banged up last season.

New offensive coordinator Zac Robinson comes from the Sean McVay coaching tree, where he spent the last two seasons in Atlanta.

Gainwell is no stranger to producing as the RB2 on a team. He broke out behind Jaylen Warren in Pittsburgh last season, averaging 13 PPR fantasy points per game while playing nearly 50% of the snaps.

Head Coach Todd Bowles referred to this backfield as a “1A and 1B,” suggesting Gainwell will be heavily involved. If he can replicate the nearly 50% snap share in Pittsburgh, a path to finishing as an RB1 is fully in play.

Cyrus Allen (WR – KC)

The drumbeat on Cyrus Allen is getting louder and louder as we approach kickoff to the regular season. It’s hard not to buy a ticket at his ADP price tag. He’s basically free and has been earning first-team reps while capitalizing on the opportunity.

Rashee Rice is the No. 1 receiver, but as we know, he’s one mistake away from possibly missing time. Xavier Worthy, who’s entering his third year, still has a lot to prove as a disappointing first-round selection so far.

If Allen continues to play his way into meaningful snaps, he may end up being very difficult to take off the field. He has several ways to cash, but the best part is it costs almost nothing to find out.

Christian Watson (WR – GB)

This isn’t your traditional lottery ticket, but hear me out. The payoff still has massive potential, like hitting the jackpot.

Watson is the type of player who can single-handedly take your roster to the moon. He’s currently going off the board as a high-end WR3, but he has WR1 upside.

With Josh Jacobs sitting on the Commissioner Exempt List, the Packers’ offense may need to get more pass-happy. MarShawn Lloyd looks to be the next man up, but his injury history is concerning.

They traded for Kaleb Johnson, indicating this backfield may be a running back by committee if/until Jacobs returns. Perhaps we see Jordan Love airing it out more than we have seen in years past.

In only 10 games played last season, Watson was off the charts, posting 2.67 yards per route run, 18.0 average depth of target, and 0.24 targets per route run, per Fantasy Points Data Suite.

He’s a home run waiting to happen. He had 11 receptions of 20+ yards, tying for the fifth-most from Week 9 on, last season. It’s fair to wonder how many big-play touchdowns are in store for Watson in 2026.

Getting this kind of production as a WR3 is a smash click in the fifth round. Watson has the ceiling to turn that pick into a league-winning lottery ticket.