BY RICH CAMPBELL

ASHBURN--

Through all the smokescreens and misinformation about possibly selecting a quarterback or a safety, coach Mike Shanahan emerged last night from the first round of his first draft at the helm of the Washington Redskins with a player that fills a crucial team need: offensive tackle Trent Williams.

The Redskins were connected with several different scenarios as the day progressed, and they left themselves many options. Ultimately, though, they kept the fourth overall pick and selected Williams, the agile, versatile lineman from the University of Oklahoma.

"We had a bunch of different directions we could go," Shanahan said last night. "Obviously I thought that the left tackle position was a need. I wasn't sure if Trent was going to be there.

"If Trent wasn't there, would we have entertained different positions? Sure we would have."

Williams immediately is penciled in as the Redskins' starting left tackle, Shanahan said. The first-team all-American will replace six-time Pro Bowler Chris Samuels, who retired this off-season after suffering a neck injury last season.

The Redskins drafted Williams over offensive tackle Russell Okung, who went sixth to Seattle, and safety Eric Berry, who Kansas City drafted fifth. Williams provides an instant boost to an offensive line that struggled mightily and undermined the entire offense last season

"Words cannot explain the feeling," Williams said in a conference call from New York. "Especially to go to Washington, which I feel like is a dream situation for me."

Washington's selection of Williams ends the franchise's decade of neglecting the offensive line in the draft.

He's the first offensive lineman the Redskins have drafted higher than the third round since taking Samuels third overall in 2000. The team's failure to address the line was exposed last season, as injuries and a lack of quality depth reduced the line to one of the worst units in the NFL.