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Panthers will open practice windows for Taylor Moton and Tershawn Wharton coming out of the bye

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Dave Canales said both starters, out since the offseason with a blood clot and neck surgery, will begin their 21-day return windows this week as Carolina prepares for Philadelphia.

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WhyNFL Sports DeskPublished
Tershawn Wharton in a 2021 archive photograph.
Tershawn Wharton in 2021 (archive photo). Photo: All-Pro Reels from District of Columbia, USA / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Carolina Panthers will start the clock on returns for right tackle Taylor Moton and defensive lineman Tershawn Wharton this week, head coach Dave Canales said Monday as the team came back from its bye.

Neither veteran has played this season. Opening their 21-day practice windows is the first formal step toward putting two experienced starters back into a lineup that has leaned on rookies at both spots.

“We’ll open up Turk and T-Mo’s window this week, for sure,” Canales told reporters, using the nicknames for Wharton and Moton. He added that the team would share more once it sees how each player handles the work.

Where each player stands

Moton has been on the reserve/non-football illness list since June because of a blood clot in his left lung. The 31-year-old has been Carolina’s right tackle for years: a second-round pick out of Western Michigan in 2017, he played 16 games and started 15 there in 2025, and his contract runs through 2027. First-round rookie Monroe Freeling has started at right tackle in his place.

Wharton went on the reserve/physically unable to perform list after neck surgery in May. He joined the Panthers in 2025 on a three-year, $54 million deal after starting his career with the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted player, and he made 36 tackles with two sacks in nine games last season. Second-round rookie Lee Hunter and undrafted rookie Aaron Hall have absorbed his snaps on the defensive line.

Once a window opens, the team has 21 days to move a player onto the 53-man roster. If it does not, he stays on his list for the rest of the season. Canales did not say whether either player could be ready for Sunday, and both still depend on how their bodies respond to full practice.

More help on the way

Canales also said running back Trevor Etienne will be activated from injured reserve before Sunday’s game, according to reporters at his news conference. Carolina is 2-2 after a 32-26 win over the Detroit Lions on October 4, its last game before the bye. Every roster move is tracked on the WhyNFL transactions page.

What comes next

The Panthers visit the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, October 18, at 1 p.m. EDT at Lincoln Financial Field, then host Tampa Bay on Sunday, October 25.

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