It is clear the Seattle Seahawks have an offensive line problem through four games of the 2025-26 NFL season, but the unit still came through in pivotal moments during Thursday night's dramatic 23-20 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. Charles Cross, the best of the bunch, made an especially impactful play that helped his team leave Glendale in high spirits.
In fact, it is head coach Mike Macdonald's favorite of the year to this point. The dependable left tackle pushed Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet into the end zone on third and goal from the one-yard line with just over a minute remaining in the first half. If not for his impressive efforts and strength, Seattle would have been faced with a tough decision on fourth down. Instead, Cross forced his teammate through the plane and helped secure a 14-3 lead for his squad.
That score ultimately proved to be quite important, as the Seahawks were able to survive a furious fourth-quarter comeback by the Cardinals, due in part to the double-digit cushion they had built for themselves earlier in this NFC West battle. Cross was happy to help.
“I just saw that he wasn't in the end zone yet and just playing team ball,” the No. 9 overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft told the media after the win, per Gregg Bell of the Tacoma News Tribune. “Helping my guys, pushing the pile… I was in tunnel vision in the moment, so I was just running through him and making sure he was in the end zone.”
Charles Cross continues to lift an overall shaky O-Line. Entering this Week 4 matchup, the 24-year-old boasted an 81.7 pass-blocking grade and a 75.6 run-blocking grade, per Pro Football Focus. In addition to what he does in the trenches, Cross also moves with a bright competitive fire.
It is a key reason why Seattle is 3-1 to start the campaign. He will stay ready when the Seahawks square off with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-0) in Lumen Field next Sunday.
