Williams drafted by NFL's Seattle Seahawks

It took a lot longer than expected, but Australia’s Jesse Williams has been drafted by the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks.

Williams, 22, from Brisbane, was a relieved man on Saturday (Sunday AEST) after the Seahawks announced they would take him with the 137th pick in the fifth round of the NFL Draft, underway in Manhattan at Radio City Music Hall.

Williams, who stands 191cm tall, weighs 147kg and possesses freakish strength and speed, was forecast by some draft experts to be selected in Thursday’s elite first round.

However, the defensive tackle from the University of Alabama was continually overlooked, forcing Williams to nervously sit through Thursday’s first round, Friday’s second and third rounds and then Saturday’s fourth round to know where he would play in the NFL.

He had to listen to 136 other players have their names called out before the Seahawks selected him.

It appears knee surgery Williams had in 2011, and another arthroscopic procedure in January, may have scared off NFL teams who had a wealth of quality defensive tackles to choose from in the draft.

Williams’ management said he will be the first indigenous Australian to play in the NFL.

Two other Aussies, Louisiana State University’s Brad Wing and University of Hawaii’s Alex Dunnachie, both punters, have entered the draft but are yet to be selected.

The NFL Draft takes place over seven rounds and three days, with rounds four to seven held on Saturday.

If Wing and Dunnachie are drafted, it will likely come in the seventh round.

If they aren’t selected, they can still be signed by teams after the draft.

The number one overall pick in the draft on Thursday was Eric Fisher, an offensive tackle from Central Michigan University, who was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs.