CHARLOTTE — Taylor Moton was feeling tired after returning from his youth camp in Michigan in late June, and he was going to lie down and take a nap.

Then he tasted blood. Then he started coughing it up. It didn't take long to realize it was serious.

A quick trip to one hospital, then a second one, and the words "pulmonary embolism" got his attention.

At that point, this was no longer a football question, but his first conversation with Dr. Nancy Gritter, the team internist, brought that reality home.

"Ultimately, Dr. Gritter came in and told me I'm going to have to be on blood thinners for three months and explained to me what being on blood thinners meant," Moton recalled on Tuesday, after his first practice since being placed on the non-football illness list back in the summer. "The first thing I believe she said was it means no taking on bull rushes from Nic Scourton, and I was like, OK, so that means no ball for me.

"I was like, so I guess there's no ball for me for a little bit."

Then, it became about getting healthy.

During the three months he was on blood thinners and prohibited from football contact, Moton kept thinking about a day like Tuesday, when he could get back and practice, and then break down the team afterward.

That's why Dave Canales said there was a spirit of gratitude at Tuesday's practice and, "Of course nobody could break the team down today other than Taylor Moton."

That's a long journey from late June, when Moton's medical saga began. He said the ultrasounds and CT scans he had at two separate hospitals revealed "a multitude of clots in my right lung."

"It was scary. You start coughing up blood, you start thinking the worst," Moton said. "But thank God I'm still on this side of the Earth, right? Like past football, man, it just makes you count your blessings, right? So I'm just happy to be here, still get to see my family and what have you. Like I said, it's just a blessing."

Now, he has to be careful about staying hydrated; he has to be intentional about his travel (he only made the quick flight to Jacksonville for joint practices). Little things like scratching a mosquito bite and remembering it wasn't going to stop bleeding as quickly were the reminders throughout the summer that things were different.

He said that Gritter and the specialists he's met with have told him the chances are "relatively low" that he'd have further complications. And that made it an easy choice for him once that three-month window opened in late September, and he got used to life without the medication.

"I just decided to take those risks and get back to it," he said. "I love the sport. I love being in a locker room with the guys, and I love this organization, this city, and everything they've done for me. So I'm just happy I could get back to work and get back to what I love to do."

That kind of attitude is no surprise. Canales described him as the "fun uncle" of the locker room, and they've been calling him OG for years. But he's also a dad in there, because of the way he handles his business and the way he expects accountability from others.

Left tackle Rasheed Walker, who is new here, learned that about Moton quickly.

"Great guy, a great teammate. He's an awesome vet, super hard worker. Really works on his craft all the time. Supportive guy. He's a great guy," Walker began when asked about what it meant to see him out there Tuesday. "Personally, I feel like it's just a testimony to his gratitude and his love for the game because he's been here every day, just constantly off to the side, making sure he's keeping himself sharp for when he returns. And if he's not in, the way he's getting sets by himself or doing core work or extra workouts. He's been training every day to get back in a safe way. He hasn't missed a meeting.

"He's been supporting all the guys, and he's been the same person every single day. I'd say personally he's probably my favorite player on the team. I voted for him three times for team captain."​

That's why one of the jokes is the number of people who wish him a Happy Birthday on a regular basis, many more times than he actually celebrates one.

"Every other week it's Happy Birthday, T-Mo," Canales laughed. "That's the way he is. And as fun-loving as he is, there isn't anybody that is more conscientious about their fundamentals and their technique, and it's why he's been able to be so successful for so long. He gets back out there in practice, and you can just see how technical he is with his footwork, with his hand placement. And a great example for all the guys, for Monroe Freeling, for all these guys to kind of see how you go about your work and being detailed."

Of course, with Freeling's immediate future in some degree of question after he had a knee injury before the bye, there's an opening if Moton is ready to go this week. He deferred on that question, leaving it to the staff to determine if he's ready, but he's practicing as if he's going against the Eagles Sunday.

Mostly, he's just thinking about the chance he has, so being able to be in the middle of the huddle today was a special moment for him, one he's thankful for.

"My message today was, guys, just have an attitude of gratitude," Moton said. "Coach Canales spoke on that too, man, and that's just not taking it for granted, you know what I mean? And along with that is just making sure we come in here and you come to work, you do everything the right way, right? You put 100 percent effort and all your preparation, and that's not just in the building; that's out of the building with watching film, how you hydrate with your nutrition, with your treatment routine, whatever that is, sticking with that plan, man. And ultimately just that that's how you show gratitude for this because you never know when that day comes.

"Honestly, it gave me more gratitude for life in general. Like football, yeah. But just past that, just now I wake up with a new sense of happy to be able to put my feet on this side of the Earth."