After spending the first eight weeks of the season on injured reserve, Seattle Seahawks offensive guard Christian Haynes has been designated to return to practice, the team announced Wednesday.

That means the Seahawks now have 21 days to either place Haynes on the 53-man roster or season-ending IR.

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Haynes, a 2024 third-round draft pick, entered training camp in a battle with Anthony Bradford for the starting right guard job. Bradford appeared to run away with the competition, while Haynes missed the preseason finale with a pectoral injury that landed him on IR.

Bradford has played nearly every snap at right guard this season, but has struggled. The 2023 fourth-round pick ranks 74th out of 82 guards in Pro Football Focus grading. He has allowed a team-high 17 pressures, which is tied for the 11th-most among NFL guards, according to PFF.

Last year, Bradford and Haynes were in a tight battle at right guard that lingered through the first half of the season. Bradford started and got most of the playing time over that stretch, but Haynes continued to rotate in for occasional series until the team finally settled on Bradford in Week 9.

Related: Seattle Seahawks designate their rookie fullback to return from IR

The Seahawks also shuffled players on their practice squad, signing running back/kick returner Velus Jones and releasing former UW Huskies star running back Myles Gaskin.

Jones, a 2022 third-round pick out of Tennessee, has appeared in 34 career games with the Chicago Bears, Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints.

As a kick returner, Jones has posted a 25.9-yard average on 48 returners. He also has five punt returns for 35 yards.

On offense, Jones has played both wide receiver and running back. He has totaled 12 catches for 135 yards and a touchdown, along with 20 carries for 165 yards and a TD.

Jones appeared in five games for the Saints this season before he was waived last week. He returned eight kicks for an average of 22.9 yards per return.

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