Charles Cross 5th-year option projection

What it will cost the Seahawks and why an extension is still most likely

The Seahawks are the only team in the NFL to have never exercised a fifth-year option, but that’s destined to change with Charles Cross. Seattle could still extend Cross before he gets to his fifth year, a scenario I first laid out in October, so it would be surprising if we get to the May 1st deadline and the Seahawks haven’t exercised their option.

What it will cost: $18.9 million in 2026

Overthecap.com projects an $18.9 million guaranteed salary for Cross in 2026 based on position and playing time.

• Cross has played in 48 of a possible 51 games (49 including playoffs)

• Cross has played in every snap aside from the 3 missed games

• Left tackle is often referred to as the 2nd-most important offensive position

Be thankful for “snubs”

If Cross had made a Pro Bowl in his first three seasons, the cost of the fifth-year option would be $23.33 million. If he had made multiple Pro Bowls, that cost goes up to $25.8 million. See the cost of “hitting” on a first round center?

The fifth-year option for Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum?

$25.8 million!

A two-time Pro Bowler, Linderbaum is one of the best centers in the NFL but unfortunately for Baltimore they have to now negotiate around the fact that his fifth-year option is almost $8 million more than the highest-paid center (Creed Humphrey) in the league! His agent should have all the leverage needed to get Linderbaum the best contract for a center in the NFL.

Similarly, the Jets have to give Sauce Gardner a $20.9 million fifth-year option because he’s made two Pro Bowls, but the consensus is that Gardner has gotten worse each successive season.

So the Seahawks are not necessarily in a great position with Cross because it’s still an expensive decision — maybe pricier than he’s worth — but it could be a lot worse.

Cross is the best tackle in the 2022 class

Here are the tackles in 2022 and NFL.com’s fifth-year option projection:

• Ikem Ekwonu, Panthers, 6th overall (5th year option: Yes. Inconsistent, bad pass blocker, but good enough)

• Evan Neal, Giants, 7th overall (Option: No. May just be a backup at this point.)

• Kenyon Green, Texans, 15th overall (Option: No. He’s a guard, but still he’s a guard who might not have a starting job next season.)

• Zion Johnson, Chargers, 17th overall (Option: Yes. It’s a slim yes for an OK player.)

• Trevor Penning, Saints, 19th (Option: No. A tackle often mocked to Seattle in 2022, Penning has been replaced.)

• Tyler Smith, Cowboys, 24th overall (Option: Yes. A great player, but had to slide inside to guard.)

• Cole Strange, Patriots, 29th overall (Option: No. Injury prone.)

The All-2022 Draft offensive line would slot Charles Cross at left tackle, Tyler Smith at left guard, and Tyler Linderbaum at center, and you’d probably fill it out with Zion Johnson and fourth round tackle Cordell Vinson.

No matter what complaints we make about the Seahawks offensive line, in that context we have to give Seattle credit for doing something right.

Cross 2026 relative cost

If the Seahawks pay Cross on the fifth-year option in 2026, his $18.9 million salary will rank 10th in the NFL for left tackles.

It would be safe to say that some of these players will be on the chopping block, or restructured, moving $18.9 million up the ranks. Of course, Seattle probably won’t pay Cross on the fifth-year option and would prefer to extend him before that happens.

An easy one to predict would be Terron Armstead getting released by the Dolphins, and we can probably throw Orlando Brown in there too. Jake Matthews and Taylor Decker are getting to their mid-30s.

By the time we get to Week 1 of the 2026 season, an $18.9 million cap hit will be very close to the top of the league.

But the upside here is that Cross will only be 26. Letting him leave and become a franchise left tackle for another team is simply something the Seahawks can’t afford to see happen.

What should fans expect?

Fans should expect the Seahawks to first exercise the fifth-year option before May 1st to lock Cross in for at least the next two seasons, extending their negotiating window and potentially even keeping the door open for a franchise tag if it comes to that in 2027.

It won’t come to that.

Unless Cross is a tough negotiator with a lot of confidence in himself to stay healthy and remain a starter, his best bet is to lock in an extension when a great offer hits the table. His ideal situation would be the contract that Christian Darrisaw signed with the Vikings in 2024:

• 4 years

• $104 million ($26m per year)

• $43.7 million guaranteed at signing ($77.5m total gtd)

The Seahawks would prefer to see that number down in the $20 million range like Jordan Mailata, Garrett Bolles, and Dion Dawkins (all three are rated higher than Cross, if we’re being fair) but that’s probably unrealistic given the rising cap number. A $26 million figure seems bonkers today, but it could be the norm when Cross becomes a “free agent” in 2027.

(In quotes because you’re not free if the team tags you.)

Cross’s agent will know that his client has $18.9 million locked in for 2026 and then a franchise tag number close to $30 million in 2027. (It’s really early to project the 2027 tag, but the 2025 tag for tackles is $25.8 million and it’s gonna go up fast.) In reality, a four-year, $100 million contract could end up being a bargain for Seattle.

And let’s be honest:

The Seahawks don’t have a lot of other players that they HAVE to pay!

When we’re judging the really good 2022 draft class, Charles Cross still stands out as the most reliable, most important, and most consistently good player of the bunch:

• Boye Mafe, super inconsistent

• Kenneth Walker, should be relatively easy to extend due to position

• Abe Lucas, injury prone

• Coby Bryant, just finding his groove

• Tariq Woolen, inconsistent

What the Seahawks would probably like to do is extend Charles Cross in 2025 and eliminate the need to negotiate with him in 2026 or 2027, save the franchise tag for Mafe or Lucas, extend Walker sometime in the fall/winter, and extend Bryant next spring, if necessary. The only player who I have absolutely no sense of what they want to do with is Woolen, simply because I think he’s been in the dog house more often than either coaching staff has let on.

Other players hitting free agency next year, if not extended or released, include DK Metcalf, Dre’Mont Jones, Geno Smith, Noah Fant, Michael Dickson, and Sam Howell.

A fifth-year option would delay the Cross decision until 2027, but free agents then include Devon Witherspoon and Jaxon Smith-Njigba (if they don’t get their options), Derick Hall, Zach Charbonnet, Jason Myers, Leonard Williams, Uchenna Nwosu, and others.

I’ve been saying it for the past four months, I see no reason to stop now:

The Seahawks will try and get an extension done for Charles Cross in 2025.

But will Cross like their best offer?

Seaside Joe 2185