2022 NFL Draft: Grading Seahawks’ No. 9 pick of Charles Cross

Lots of teams made flashier picks in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft but few made better than Charles Cross who went to the Seattle Seahawks. 

The Seattle Seahawks traded away their franchise quarterback and while it seems a little confusing to draft a franchise left tackle soon after the trade of Russell Wilson, Charles Cross was just too good to pass up at ninth overall in the 2022 NFL draft.

Cross was a guy that was expected to go in the top six overall of the draft. He isn’t known as good a run blocker as some others in the draft such as Evan Neal, but the NFL is a passing league and you need guys who can block elite pass rushers, which Charles Cross can do, maybe better than anyone in this draft class.

Of course, playing for Mississippi State, it’s not a surprise that Cross took more pass-blocking reps than any other offensive lineman in college football since 2020 under Mike Leach, who runs the pass-happiest offense in the country.

Yet, Cross was exceptional in pass protection, and here’s our grade for his pick in the 2022 NFL draft.

Charles Cross to Seahawks, Grade: A

I know that some Seattle fans were probably hoping they would take Malik Willis or another quarterback but I never expected Seattle to do it. There wasn’t a sure-fire pick at that spot and with a franchise left tackle sitting there in Charles Cross, it was a no-brainer.

This quarterback class has some depth and there will be some options early in the second round or if Seattle wants to move up for a guy like Desmond Ridder, who feels like a perfect fit for Pete Carroll and what they want to do, that’s still possible.

Seattle let the board come to it and left with one of the draft’s elite offensive tackles.

Grade: A