FOXBORO — Patriots rookie Jaheim Bell suddenly found himself atop the tight end depth chart early this week.

Bell made the most out of his opportunities in Sunday’s practice with Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper held out of practice and Mitchell Wilcox forced to leave early with an injury, catching three touchdowns passes from three different quarterbacks.

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“The last couple of days have been going great,” Bell said. “I’ve just been preparing every day. Whenever it was my time to shine, yesterday was one of those days for me, and I always tell myself to be ready when that moment comes, because when you get those moments, you don’t want to look back and say I wish I did this, and I wish I did that. So with that opportunity that I had, I made the most of it.”

Hooper was back at practice Monday at a limited capacity, while Henry and Wilcox didn’t participate. Bell caught one pass from rookie Drake Maye but dropped a deep crossing pattern from rookie third-stringer Joe Milton III.

“He’s really stepped up to the challenge, and he’s taken a lot of reps,” head coach Jerod Mayo said of Bell on Monday before practice. “He’s one of those guys that has a unique skill set. He can run with the ball in his hands, and we just have to do a good job getting it to him.”

Bell was selected in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Florida State. At 6-foot-2, 241 pounds, Bell is undersized as an NFL tight end and is still working on his ability as a blocker.

“I think I’m getting better every day, and I think it’s starting to show,” Bell said. “I just want to continue to get better with that, because a lot of people know what I do with the ball in my hands, so that’s just another attribute that I want to add to my game to get better at.”

Bell played fullback, tight end, slot receiver and lined up out wide in four college seasons at Florida State and South Carolina. If he makes the Patriots’ 53-man roster, he’s expected to serve as a backup behind Henry and Hooper and potentially take on a role on special teams.

He should take on a major role in Sunday’s preseason finale against the Commanders, assuming the Patriots play it safe with Henry, Hooper and Wilcox. La’Michael Pettway and undrafted rookie Jacob Warren fill out the tight end depth chart.