The Miami Dolphins have a new player.
It just took a convoluted route to get Christian Haynes onto their roster from the Seattle Seahawks with a path that at least temporarily confused the NFL, and specifically the Baltimore Ravens, thanks to the league’s waiver claim order.
The end result is pretty simple: The Dolphins claimed Haynes off waivers from the Seahawks.
But let’s take a look at what happened.
Dolphins-Ravens Waiver Claim Mistake
When an NFL player is waived by one team, there’s a waiver order across the league for which teams get the chance to claim those players first.
The Dolphins, at 1-5, are only passed in that order by the Los Angeles Chargers (0-6). If the Dolphins want a waived player right now, they get him as long as the Chargers don’t put in a claim.
So when the Seahawks put Haynes in waivers, the Dolphins put in a claim. They wanted to add the offensive lineman to their roster.
The Ravens did, too, and that’s where things got murky.
Baltimore actually thought they had added Haynes. They posted on their social media accounts that he was the newest member of the Ravens.
They apparently didn’t know Miami had a claim, too.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the mishap on Wednesday evening:
A waiver shakeup: Despite Baltimore announcing it claimed former Seahawks G Christian Haynes, the Miami Dolphins actually did. The Dolphins have a higher claim and were awarded Haynes.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 28, 2026
It’s hard to know exactly how this was messed up, but it seems like a case of information being communicated too early.
In the end, the Dolphins get Haynes, not the Ravens.
Who is Christian Haynes?
Christian Haynes is a 26-year-old offensive guard who stands 6-foot-3 and weights 317 pounds.
He’s actually a Super Bowl champion for his time spent with the Seahawks on their championship team last season.
Haynes was a third-round pick of the Seahawks in the 2024 NFL Draft out of UConn.
So far in the NFL, Haynes has played 31 games. That included 16 in 2024, eight in 2025 and all seven so far this season. Haynes also appeared in two games last year during the postseason.
The Seahawks actually waived Haynes despite him starting five games so far in 2026. They had to make room for the newly acquired Quenton Nelson from the Indianapolis Colts.
Haynes is a quality pickup for the Dolphins. It’s rare you get a 26-year old with starting NFL experience randomly in the middle of the season off waivers.
It just was a little more complicated than Miami thought to end up with Haynes in the first place.
Dolphins Confuse NFL, Ravens With Waiver Claim Order Pickup