The Miami Dolphins officially made Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long the number one selection in the draft.

Earlier this week the hapless Dolphins had signed Long to a five-year, $57 million contract, making him the NFL's highest paid lineman and eliminating any suspense on who they would select with the top choice.

Chris Long, the Virginia defensive end whose father Howie is an NFL Hall of Famer at the same position, was grabbed second by the St Louis Rams.

Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan was taken third by the Atlanta Falcons, followed by Arkansas running back Darren McFadden by the Oakland Raiders and Louisiana State defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey by the Kansas City Chiefs.

There was little drama in the draft with most of the top players getting selected pretty much where the pundits had predicted.

Chris Long said he had no idea when he would be chosen.

"I had an open mind this morning when I woke up and just tried to stay as calm as possible," he said. "I knew that I was going to be a St. Louis Ram when you guys knew.

"It was a huge adrenaline rush. Best moment of my life."

The seven-round draft, in which 252 collegiate players are selected, was being held over two days at the Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan.

McFadden was widely regarded as the best running back in college but several arrests outside bars had some general managers questioning his character.

The record-setting tailback said he was "very happy to be over with" the ordeal.

"It's a long grueling process," said McFadden, who rushed for at least 100 yards 22 times in 38 games at Arkansas.

"You're just waiting to get somewhere and play football."

Miami finished 1-15 in 2007 and the addition of Jake Long, a double Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year, should boost an offense that ranked 28th of 32 teams in 2007.

The 6ft-7in, 315-pound Long became the first offensive lineman to be taken with the number one overall pick since Orlando Pace was selected by the St Louis Rams in 1997.

"I want to go in there and work hard every day," Long said.

"I want to show the leadership that I had in college with great work ethic. I'll lead by example.

"I'm so excited this is done. I'll go out there and do everything I can to help this team win."

The Super Bowl champion New York Giants had the final pick in the first round and chose Miami safety Kenny Phillips.

Order of selections in the first round of the draft (overall pick, NFL team, player, position, college):

1 Miami Dolphins - Jake Long, OT, Michigan,

2 St. Louis Rams - Chris Long, DE, Virginia

3 Atlanta Falcons - Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College

4 Oakland Raiders - Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas

5 Kansas City Chiefs - Glenn Dorsey, DT, Louisiana State

6 New York Jets - Vernon Gholston, DE, Ohio State

7 New Orleans Saints (trade with New England), Sedrick Ellis, DT, Southern California

8 Jacksonville Jaguars (trade with Baltimore) - Derrick Harvey, DE, Florida

9 Cincinnati Bengals - Keith Rivers, LB, Southern California,

10 New England Patriots (trade with New Orleans) - Jerod Mayo, LB, Tennessee

11 Buffalo Bills - Leodis McKelvin CB, Troy

12 Denver Broncos - Ryan Clady, OT, Boise State

13 Carolina Panthers, Jonathan Stewart, RB, Oregon

14 Chicago Bears - Chris Williams, OT, Vanderbilt

15 Kansas City Chiefs (trade with Detroit Lions) - Branden Albert, OG, Virginia

(Note: OT denotes offensive tackle, DE denotes defensive end, QB denotes quarterback, RB denotes running back, DT denotes defensive tackle, LB denotes linebacker, CB denotes cornerback, OG denotes offensive guard)

Reuters