The Seattle Seahawks did more than just revamp their passing personnel this offseason. They have totally remade their identity. For the last five years wide receiver DK Metcalf had been the top athlete on the roster, and the focal point of their offense, whether under Geno Smith or Russell Wilson.
With Metcalf now out of the picture - as well as Smith and Tyler Lockett - a new generation of Seahawks has a chance to emerge as the fuel that makes this team go. Heading into the 2025 season, you could argue that the team's 2023 first-round draft picks: cornerback Devon Witherspoon and wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba - are now the best players on the team.
Pro Football Focus seems to think so, anyway. In a new article ranking the top three players for all 32 teams around the league they chose Witherspoon and JSN, but for the third spot they took left tackle Charles Cross rather than star defensive end Leonard Williams.
PFF picks Seahawks' top 3 players
"Witherspoon's 69.2 coverage grade in 2024 was solid, but his 90.0 run-defense grade helped anchor Seattle’s defense. Smith-Njigba led the team in WAR (0.50) among non-quarterbacks and earned an 83.5 receiving grade. Cross continued his growth with career highs in run-blocking (77.9), pass-blocking (81.3) and overall grade (82.5)."
Spoon and JSN are deserving candidates, and Cross is a good left tackle with the chance to be a great one some day. However, to pick him over Williams is nonsense.
If we go by PFF's own grading system, Williams was a significantly better performer than Cross this past season. Williams ended the 2024 campaign with an 87.1 overall grade, the highest for any Seahawks starter on defense. Meanwhile, Cross came in almost five points lower at 82.5 overall.
It's admittedly difficult to quantify the difference when Cross and Williams play two completely different positions and impact the game in completely different ways. That said, the eyeball test makes this a pretty easy choice. Even at his advanced age and with a far more expensive contract, Williams is the better value and a better player.
