The Redskins selected Oklahoma offensive tackle Trent Williams with the No. 4 pick in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft.
Williams learned of his NFL future while in attendance at the draft in New York City. He spoke with Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan on the phone prior to the announcement of the team's selection.
Said Williams: "Coach Shanahan called me and he just wanted to know if I was committed to being great, and I assured him that I was, 100 percent."
Asked about protecting new Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb, Williams replied: "It's an honor, more than anything. He's a great quarterback and I have been looking up to him for a long time now. It's a dream come true."
Williams, 6-5 and 318 pounds, brings impressive credentials to the Redskins. He was a four-year starter at Oklahoma.
He started at right tackle in 2006-08 and then replaced Phil Loadholt (now a starter for the Minnesota Vikings) at left tackle last year. He has also played center.
Last year, with Williams as the lone returning starter along the offensive line, the Sooners ranked 11th in the nation with an average of 289.23 passing yards per game and 16th nationally in fewest sacks allowed per game (1.15).
Williams was a first-team All-American as a senior in 2009, a third-team All-American as a junior in 2008, and a second-team Freshman All-American in 2006.
He showed great mobility and an ability to physically dominate pass rushers.
That mobility is surely what interested the Redskins, according to NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock.
The Redskins are expected to implement a zone-blocking scheme that relies on the ability to be mobile after the snap.
"Williams fits Washington's scheme better," Mayock wrote on NFL.com. "He's a little bit more athletic for the Redskins' zone-blocking scheme. I think Williams makes more sense [than Oklahoma State's Russell Okung] for the Redskins at pick No. 4."
Williams grew up in Longview, Tex., the same hometown as current Redskins Malcolm Kelly and Robert Henson.
"He's like my little brother," Kelly said on April 14.
Asked for a scouting report on Williams, Kelly said: "Trent Williams is about 6-5, 320, and he runs a legit 4.8 in the 40," Kelly said. "He has quick feet. He's an amazing athlete. [In basketball], he can dribble down the court in a fast break like a guard.
"He's a real athletic offensive tackle. He's going to be a real stable, a real good bookend [tackle] for somebody."
Williams is the first offensive tackle selected by the Redskins in the first round since Chris Samuels in 2000 (No. 3 overall). Samuels started 11 seasons for Washington before retiring this offseason. He earned six Pro Bowl berths.
Williams is the fourth offensive tackle taken in the first round of the draft by the Redskins, joining Samuels, Andre Johnson (1996), and Mark May (1981).
