Drew Brees was all smiles when he finally returned to Saints practice on Thursday.

The Saints are going for their third consecutive win without their long-time quarterback this Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

At Thursday's practice, Drew was spotted in a red non-contact jersey, and did drills off to the side by himself, away from the main portion of the practice.

Last weekend, he made his return to the Saints sidelines during their game against the Dallas Cowboys, after spending nearly two weeks in Los Angeles after undergoing thumb surgery.

So, what exactly was he doing during practice if he wasn't throwing? He went through stretching and warm-ups like he usually would, donning a black brace on his right hand.

Sunday at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, his workout included stretching, running from sideline to sideline and going through his throwing progressions.

You can tell he's more than ready to get back out on the field.

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