Denver Broncos running back Jonah Coleman (ankle) returned to practice on Wednesday as the team designated the rookie as a candidate to return from injured reserve.

Coleman has now opened his 21-day window to be activated to the 53-man roster. If he is not activated within three weeks, Coleman will remain on IR for the rest of the season. NFL teams are allowed to designate up to eight players to return from IR each season.

Coleman's return to practice comes at a good time for Denver as Tyler Badie just went down with a thumb injury last week.

Coleman (5-8, 220 pounds) was picked by the Broncos in the fourth round of this year's NFL draft out of Washington. He rushed 10 times for 39 yards and a touchdown in Week 2 while adding three receptions for 19 yards. Most of that production came after Coleman injured his ankle, but the severity of his injury was not known until after the game. After landing on IR, Coleman was required to sit out at least four games.

The rookie is now getting closer to returning as the club's RB3 behind J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey. We'll see if he's officially activated to the 53-man roster ahead of Sunday's game against the Arizona Cardinals.