What makes them tick

NEW YORK -- It’s called the NFL draft, but it’s almost like a high-stakes game of lining up dominoes.

The first one is in place -- the Miami Dolphins made Michigan tackle Jake Long the No. 1 overall selection -- and the rest will begin falling today, when two of the seven rounds take place.

According to the NFL, more people will be watching the draft than the NBA playoffs when the two events are being aired at the same time. Recognizing the draft has increasingly become a made-for-TV spectacle, the league moved the start time back three hours to noon PDT and shortened the time between selections. Teams will now have 10 minutes to make a pick in the first round, instead of 15, and seven minutes in the second round, instead of 10. The third round has been moved to Sunday. The event will air on ESPN and the league-owned NFL Network, which is broadcasting four hours of pre-draft coverage.

Commissioner Roger Goodell said the reason for the changes “is to make it more entertaining and make it more fun for the fans. There was a significant amount of time during the picks that teams just sat on their picks, waiting to see if somebody came to them.

“We felt that it was a time that was not necessary. So we shortened the rounds. By shortening the rounds, it gave us the ability to move it later in the day, which made it more convenient for a large part of the country, particularly the West Coast.”

The quicker rounds are the only pared-down aspect of this draft. Otherwise, what is officially known as the “annual player selection meeting” has only grown by the year -- in magnitude, money and fan interest. Oh, and the players aren’t shrinking either. It’s entirely conceivable that half of the first 10 picks could weigh in the neighborhood of 300 pounds.

Unlike in years past, when skill-position players dominated the top half of the first round, this class is loaded with big men, offensive and defensive linemen who will command gargantuan salaries.

In signing a five-year, $57-million deal, Long became the highest-paid offensive lineman in the league. And he’s never participated in a practice, let alone played in a game.

“That drives me,” Long said. “It pushes me, because I’ve got to go out there and prove to people that it was a good choice and show people that I will do well at this next level.”

Rookies are paid so much, with the first player selected setting the standard, that it’s often cost-prohibitive for teams to trade up into the top five to grab one of the elite prospects. Many people in and around the league think the system needs to be addressed and changed, so that veteran players are given a bigger slice of the financial pie.

Regardless, anyone selected in the first round today will instantly become a millionaire several times over. There are 31 picks in the round, one fewer than typical because the New England Patriots were docked a selection after they broke league rules by secretly videotaping the hand signals of opposing coaches.

The Patriots will still have the seventh pick, however, and are in prime position to further upgrade their roster. Kansas City and Dallas each have two selections, whereas the Cleveland Browns, who were very active in free agency, don’t pick until the fourth round, having traded away the majority of their picks.

As many as five USC players could be chosen in the first round, but the only ones virtually guaranteed of that are defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis and linebacker Keith Rivers. There’s a good chance defensive end Lawrence Jackson, tight end Fred Davis and tackle Sam Baker will slip into the second round, although all are expected to be taken on the first day.

There is widespread speculation that several teams will look into either trading up or down in the first round, or, in the case of the Dolphins, trading back in to select a quarterback. The four passers generally considered the most promising in this draft are Boston College’s Matt Ryan, Michigan’s Chad Henne, Louisville’s Brian Brohm and Delaware’s Joe Flacco.

Before a quarterback is selected, however, the St. Louis Rams are likely to use the No. 2 pick on a defensive lineman, either Virginia’s Chris Long or Louisiana State’s Glenn Dorsey.

Chris Long, the son of Raiders great Howie Long, is comfortable with the fact he wasn’t selected first. In fact, he seemed to have the mega-event in very clear perspective.

“I don’t think of it as the draft as the achievement,” he said. “I think it’s the career afterward that matters.”

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sam.farmer@latimes.com

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Sam Farmer’s mock NFL draft

As the hours wind down before the noon PDT start of the NFL draft, the rumors abound. Will the Giants trade tight end Jeremy Shockey, possibly to New Orleans? Will the Saints trade defensive tackle Jammal Brown for a chance to land Glenn Dorsey? Will Jason Taylor be tango-ing out of Miami so the Dolphins can waltz back into the first round to get Chad Henne? Who says that the signing of Jake Long bled the mystery out of this draft?

*--* Team Player, Pos., Comment -- College 1. Miami Jake Long, T, He’s the one guy in the green room who -- Michigan won’t have that greenish hue of anticipation and stress. 2. St. Louis Glenn Dorsey, DT, Rams are divided. Lots of people in the building -- Louisiana St. like Chris Long here. 3. Atlanta Matt Ryan, QB, If the Rams take Long, the Falcons -- Boston College will take Dorsey. 4. Oakland Chris Long, DE, The Raiders like Vernon Gholston and Darren -- Virginia McFadden too, but Long has Silver & Black bloodlines. 5. Kansas Vernon Gholston, DE, It’s too early for the Chiefs to take Ryan Clady. City Ohio St. And they need help on defense with Jared Allen gone. 6. N.Y. Jets Darren McFadden, RB, Jets will get their man, but they’ll field -- Arkansas some trade offers too. 7. New Keith Rivers, LB, The Patriots really like Gholston as well, England USC but they’ll have to make an aggressive move up to get him. 8. Baltimore Ryan Clady, T, Is this the future Jonathan Ogden? -- Boise St. Well, maybe we shouldn’t go that far. 9. Cincinnati Sedrick Ellis, DT, Ellis is a fine fit here, and the Bengals are -- USC in need of more players with good character. 10. New Leodis McKelvin, CB, The Saints are trying to trade up; the Orleans Troy Jets also have McKelvin high on their board. 11. Buffalo Devin Thomas, WR, Buffalo also needs a cornerback, -- Michigan St. but a big receiver is a must. 12. Denver Chris Williams, T, Williams, quick and nimble, is more of -- Vanderbilt a Denver-type lineman than big Otah. 13. Carolina Branden Albert, G, The Panthers need help on the defensive line -- Virginia too, so Derrick Harvey is possible. 14. Chicago Jonathan Stewart, RB, The Bears would like a guard. With Albert -- Oregon off the board, it’s too early to take Chilo Rachal. 15. Detroit Derrick Harvey, DE, The Lions really like Harvey -- so does Carolina -- Florida -- but Stewart is a good fit too. 16. Arizona D. Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Rodgers-Cromarti e is a playmaker who -- Tenn. St. would be a value pick at this point. 17. Kansas Brian Brohm, QB, The Chiefs can wait for a receiver. Having two City Louisville Picks gives them the luxury of this move. 18. Houston Mike Jenkins, CB, Some consider Jenkins the best cornerback -- South Florida in this draft. Chris Williams would work here also. 19. Jerod Mayo, LB, Mayo is rising on the boards of a lot of teams. Philadelphia Tennessee The Eagles also need a receiver. 20. Tampa Limas Sweed, WR, The Buccaneers are looking for a big receiver. Bay Texas James Hardy and Malcolm Kelly fit too. 21. Phillip Merling, DE, The Redskins also like Calais Campbell, and Washington Clemson they’ll probably wait to get a receiver later. 22. Dallas Rashard Mendenhall, RB, The Cowboys like Felix Jones as well but -- Illinois could probably get him at 28. 23. Pittsburgh Jeff Otah, T, At 322 pounds, Otah is enormous, very strong -- Pittsburgh and fits the mold of past Steelers linemen. 24. James Hardy, WR, A big receiver is high on the Titans’ list. Tennessee Indiana They’ll also look at edge rushers like Lawrence Jackson. 25. Seattle Quentin Groves, LB, Despite a health scare, Groves remains a -- Auburn first-rounder. The Seahawks like Kentwan Balmer too. 26. Kentwan Balmer, DT, Jaguars love those huge defensive tackles, Jacksonville North Carolina and Balmer is definitely one of those. 27. San Diego Gosder Cherilus, T, Watch for Miami, Atlanta to trade up around for -- Boston College remaining top-shelf QB: Henne or Flacco. 28. Dallas Brandon Flowers, CB, Flowers could work his way into the Cowboys’ -- Virginia Tech starting lineup by the beginning of the regular season. 29. San Calais Campbell, DE, Campbell has taken a tumble on a lot of Francisco Miami boards. Niners also like Cherilus. 30. Green Bay Antoine Cason, CB, Arizona The Packers might try to trade back to get a -- tight end, maybe Martellus Bennett. 31. N.Y. Tyrell Johnson, SS, Despite playing at a smaller school, Johnson is a better Giants Arkansas St. prospect than Miami’s Kenny Phillips. *--*