Mississippi State football’s Charles Cross considered himself among the best offensive tackles in this year’s draft class. He’ll have a chance to prove it with the Seattle Seahawks.

Cross was selected Thursday as the ninth pick in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He is the first Bulldog selected in the first round since Johnathan Abram, Jeffery Simmons and Montez Sweat in 2019 and the first taken in the top 10 since Michael Haddix in 1983.

Here’s what Cross brings to Seattle.

The positives

Few of Cross’ counterparts display the athleticism the 6-foot-5-inch, 307-pound left tackle put on display for the Bulldogs. He posted a sub-five 40-yard dash time at the NFL Combine and his footwork earned him the nickname “Sweet Feet” at Mississippi State.

Cross became one of the nation’s top pass blockers in the Air Raid offense, playing more passing snaps (719) last season than anyone in this draft class, per Pro Football Focus. His PFF pass blocking grade (84.9) ranked fourth among FBS offensive linemen who played at least 581 passing snaps.

The concerns

Andre Dillard.

His name has come up time and time again as NFL analysts have voiced their concerns about Cross as a top selection. Dillard, an offensive tackle for the Eagles, was taken with the No. 22 pick in 2019. He was a highly-touted prospect out of Mike Leach’s system at Washington State, but his run blocking has been ugly in the NFL.

Cross played just 200 rushing snaps for Mississippi State last season.

Final thoughts

Despite the smaller sample size, Cross’ PFF run blocking grade (87.2) ranked in the top 30 for FBS players playing at least 138 running snaps. He was also recruited by Joe Moorhead, who sought quality run-blocking tackles.

He’s a quiet but confident guy. He has fielded questions about the run blocking concerns including at the NFL Combine where he kept his response short.

“Watch the film,” Cross said.

Cross is an athletic freak for his size, and with the skills defensive ends own today, teams need players with his ability. He is a good fit in virtually any offense and has potential to go down as the best offensive lineman in MSU history.

Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @skrajisnik3.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Seattle Seahawks pick Mississippi State's Charles Cross in NFL Draft