He wasn’t in pads or wearing a helmet, but Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly took a step forward in his cleats Wednesday.

Kuechly participated in light exercise at practice for the first time since he suffered a concussion in Week 1. During the part of practice open to the media, he hit the blocking sled a few times, caught a couple passes and played receiver against his fellow linebackers.

The Panthers officially listed Kuechly as ‘did not practice,’ so it appears he hasn’t yet advanced to the non-contact portion of the NFL concussion protocol.

When asked if Kuechly’s activity Wednesday was part of the ‘light exercise’ stage, coach Ron Rivera said:

“Yeah, I guess that’s what that could be considered, and we’ll see how he is in the morning.

“He’s taken a stride, but he’s still in the protocol.”

Kuechly missed the first start of his career in Week 2. Once he advances to non-contract drills, he then has to pass a test from an independent neurologist before he’s fully cleared.

Other injury notes:

• Receiver Jerricho Cotchery, who suffered a high ankle sprain against the Texans, stayed inside during practice.

“He had a good day with the trainers today. Tomorrow they may get him out there to see how he handles it,” Rivera said. “With the high ankle, you’ll know immediately tomorrow. If it’s improved vastly, who knows. If not, we’ll go from there.”

If Cotchery isn’t better, Brenton Bersin could be promoted from the practice squad as soon as Thursday morning.

• Defensive tackle Star Lotulelei, who returned to practice last week, was allowed to hit for the first time since he suffered a stress reaction in early August.

“It felt really good to get the pads on. They’re a little uncomfortable, but it definitely felt good to get them on and hit a little bit,” Lotulelei said with a smile.

“[My foot] probably still won’t even be 100 percent when I come back. I just need it to be good enough to play, so that’s what I’m aiming for.”

When he was asked if he’s confident Lotulelei can make his season debut on Sunday, Rivera said:

“Yeah, but I’ve been wrong.”

• Guard Trai Turner worked on the side after tweaking his knee in Week 2, but he should be good to go against the Saints.

“It’s just bangs and bruises from the game,” Turner said. “Coach afforded me the opportunity to heal up a little bit today, I took advantage of it and I’ll be back ready to go tomorrow.”

• Running back Jonathan Stewart, defensive end Charles Johnson, defensive tackle Kyle Love and safety Roman Harper all got the day off.

For Stewart, it’ll likely be a once-a-week thing.

“This is the same thing we did last week, it’s that Wednesday rest day, he did the same thing last week, he had Wednesday off and we’ll continue to cycle through it,” Rivera said.

WEDNESDAY’S INJURY REPORTS

Carolina Panthers

Did not practice

• WR Jerricho Cotchery (ankle)
• S Roman Harper (not injury related)
• DE Charles Johnson (hamstring)
• LB Luke Kuechly (concussion)
• DT Kyle Love (knee)
• RB Jonathan Stewart (knee)
• G Trai Turner (knee)
• T Daryl Williams (knee)

Limited

• DE Wes Horton (shoulder)
• RB Fozzy Whittaker (shoulder)

Full

• TE Richie Brockel (shoulder)
• DT Star Lotulelei (ankle)

New Orleans Saints

Did not practice

• S Jairus Byrd (knee)
• WR Brandin Cooks (ankle)
• G Jahri Evans (knee)
• CB Keenan Lewis (hip)

Limited

• QB Drew Brees (right shoulder)
• LB Dannell Ellerbe (toe)