Carolina Panthers right tackle Taylor Moton was carted off the field during Sunday's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers just weeks after making a remarkable return from his battle with blood clots.

Moton went down in the third quarter with what was initially described as a left ankle/fibula injury. He appeared to get tangled with a teammate and a Bucs defender as Tampa Bay's Yaya Diaby sacked quarterback Bryce Young. Afterwards, Moton was seen writhing in pain as teammates called for training staff to evaluate him on the field. 

Later, as he was being carted off, Moton gave a 'thumbs up' sign to the crowd.  

Head coach Dave Canales later revealed that Moton fractured his fibula and is out indefinitely for the Panthers, who fell to 3-3 with the 43-13 blowout defeat to the Bucs.

'TMo is gonna be out for a while,' Canales told reporters of the player he refers to as his locker room's 'fun uncle.'

Doctors discovered blood clots in his lungs back in June while he was hosting a youth football camp in his native Lansing, Michigan. At the time, Moton had been battling congestion and was coughing up blood. He was subsequently placed on blood thinners, which sidelined him for months before he would be cleared for contact.

But, as Moton recently told reporters, he never considered retirement and instead made his return earlier this month after missing the first four games of the season.

'I had to weigh the pros and cons of getting off the blood thinners and whether I could play ball again,' Moton said. 

'The chances are relatively low right now [of a relapse] after being on the blood thinners for three months. So I just decided to take those risks and get back to it. I love the sport and I love being in the locker room with the guys. I'm just happy I was able to get back to work.'

Without Moton, the Panthers turned to 22-year-old rookie Monroe Freeling, a first-round pick out of Georgia. 

Blood clots are a major concern for athletes, particularly because they can become exacerbated by air travel.

Currently the NFL and the players' union are reviewing the handling of Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts' blood-clot diagnosis. The Super Bowl winner was recently placed on injured reserve and is expected to miss the rest of the 2026 season after a blood clot moved into his lungs, resulting in a bilateral pulmonary emboli diagnosis.