Plane flying Panthers home from preseason game runs off taxiway in Charlotte

The plane that flew the Carolina Panthers home from their preseason game against the New England Patriots on Thursday ran off the taxiway at Charlotte Douglas Airport early on Friday morning.

The Delta chartered flight carrying players and staff members skidded into the mud while taxiing after landing around 2:35 a.m., . Nobody was injured in the incident, both the team and the airport said, and airfield lighting and the taxiway were fully operational. It's unclear what led to the incident.

Delta towed the plane out of the area about three hours later, and it took about an hour for a bus to get the team from the plane to the air center.

"The right main gear of Delta 8860 exited the taxiway at Charlotte Douglas International Airport following a normal arrival," Delta said in a statement, via ESPN. "No injuries were reported by the 188 customers who are deplaning and being bused to the terminal. We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience."

The over the Panthers at Gillette Stadium on Thursday night as quarterback Drake Maye made his debut for New England. Kevin Harris ran in a 2-yard touchdown in the second quarter for the Patriots, and then JaQuaw Jackson caught a 38-yard pass from Joe Milton in the fourth quarter to push their lead to 17 points. The Panthers only scored in the final two minutes off a 41-yard field goal from Harrison Mevis.

The Panthers, who went just 2-15 last season and missed the playoffs for a sixth straight year, will open the regular season on Sept. 8 against the New Orleans Saints.