Taliese Fuaga seemed confident he'd be back on the practice field this week , and he backed up his words Thursday.

Fuaga, who sat out the fourth quarter of last week's loss to the Arizona Cardinals with a knee injury, was back at New Orleans Saints practice Thursday afternoon.

The Saints won't release an official injury designation for Fuaga until Friday afternoon, but his return to practice suggests he may be able to play Week 2 against the San Francisco 49ers.

He was the only one of the Saints' injured starters to return to the practice field: Edge rusher Chase Young (calf) and left guard Trevor Penning (toe) did not participate in the session.

See Full Page