Saints are sixth in the Premiership, four points behind fourth-placed Bath.
England international Burrell, 29, is available to make his comeback after eight weeks out injured.
"The contacts are a little bit more physical because everyone is getting themselves mentally into the place they need to be to compete," he said.
Saints, who missed out on last season's play-offs, finishing fifth in the table, five points adrift of Leicester. will also be boosted by the return of members of England's Six Nations title-winning squad.
"We are in a position where if we put in a good performance this weekend we are right back in the mix," Burrell told BBC Radio Northampton.
"We can't get ahead of ourselves. The story of our season has been like a rollercoaster but we've got our internationals back, they've added a bit of edge in training this week."
Team-mate Kieran Brookes will again be facing the club where he spent two years of his career.
"It is a last big push," the prop said. "Potentially we can still get in to the top four if we get wins and results go our way."
Northampton Saints centre Luther Burrell says they will be in "right in the mix" for a top-four finish if they can beat Leicester Tigers on Saturday.