Seattle's left tackle spot is suddenly a question mark

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Seattle's left tackle spot is suddenly a question mark

Originally posted on Lindy's Sports | By Eman Zahra | Last updated Oct 28, 2026 8:03 AM ET

Left tackle Charles Cross went down in the fourth quarter of the 20-3 victory, and by Monday the questions about his absence were already piling up.

This one is forward-looking on purpose: the sprain report landed on Monday morning, so the story now is Seattle’s next game, a Monday-night date with the Bears on Nov. 2.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Cross has a high-ankle sprain and that the hope is a return in one to two weeks, depending on rehab, according to SB Nation. Cross left before Emanuel Wilson’s touchdown made it 20-3, and Josh Jones took his place.

PFT noted that Cross has started all 69 games he’s played since Seattle drafted him in the first round in 2022. That’s a long streak to see end on a fourth-quarter roll-up.

Mike Macdonald isn’t confirming any of it, and that’s worth noticing

The coach hasn’t signed off on the timeline.

According to Heavy, Macdonald described the injury only as an ankle, said the team hasn’t discussed injured reserve, and declined to confirm a high-ankle sprain. On the report itself, he said it “didn’t come from me or our trainer.”

Mike Macdonald isn’t confirming any of it, and that’s worth noticingTodd Olszewski / Getty Images

That doesn’t mean Rapoport is wrong. Macdonald didn’t offer a competing timeline, and he told reporters the team is taking it day by day.

But it does mean Cross’s Bears status is open. The practice reports later this week will say more than any coach’s press conference.

Josh Jones gives Seattle a real option, but the margin is thin

If Cross can’t go, Jones is the obvious answer. He has 27 career starts and handled two starts for Cross in 2025 with solid results, per Athlon Sports. That’s a better fallback than most teams have at the position.

The timing is the awkward part. The offense looked sharper against Kansas City. Sam Darnold went 20 of 28 for 257 yards and a touchdown, SB Nation’s recap shows, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba finished with nine catches for 150 yards and a score, per Seahawks.com.

Heavy adds that Seattle had allowed five sacks in each of its previous two games, so protection was a live issue before Cross even got hurt.

Receiver Rashid Shaheed left with a knee injury, but Macdonald said the “early returns are positive,” Heavy relayed from ESPN’s Brady Henderson. Running back Jadarian Price, meanwhile, is set to practice this week after being designated for return from injured reserve.

So the picture heading into the Bears game is mostly good, with one big asterisk. If Cross sits, Jones starts and Seattle finds out fast whether its early-season protection problems are behind it.

If Cross practices fully by Friday, this becomes a footnote. Either way, the answer shows up in the first week of November.

This article first appeared on Lindy's Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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