Australian giant Adam Gotsis has been drafted by the reigning NFL Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.

There were fears the star defensive tackle from Georgia Tech might slip as far as the sixth round of the NFL Draft after suffering a serious knee injury last October, but the Broncos grabbed him on Friday with the last pick of the second round.

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The Melbourne-raised 195cm tall, 127kg Gotsis was the first Australian picked in the three-day draft, which began on Thursday (Friday AEST) and will end with the seventh round on Saturday (Sunday AEST).

NFL Draft analysts were not surprised the Broncos jumped on Gotsis.

“He was one of those fast risers that everyone in the league mentioned, hoping they could steal him in the third round,” ESPN analyst Mel Kiper said.

Another ESPN analyst Todd McShay had been raving about the Australian in the lead-up to the draft and said numerous NFL teams were hoping he would not be selected so they could get him in the third round.

Gotsis follows in the footsteps of Jarryd Hayne.

“He is a perfect fit in their system,” said McShay, describing Gotsis’ potential offensive line breaking power for the Broncos.

“I know there were a bunch of teams sitting around waiting.”

Gotsis, who has a business administration degree after four years at Georgia Tech, was having a bumper season until he tore his left ACL in October in a game.

Gotsis told AAP earlier in the week he had been “attacking” rehab since and would be 100 per cent fit for September’s start of the NFL season.

“He grew up playing Australian rules football,” McShay said.

“The progress he made in just a few years at Georgia Tech was remarkable.”

Australia’s top two draft prospects yet to be selected are punter Tom Hackett (University of Utah) and kicker Brad Craddock (University of Maryland).

Other Australians hoping to be picked include punters Alex Kinal (Wake Forest), Lachlan Edwards (Sam Houston State) and Jamie Keehn (Louisiana State) and offensive lineman Blake Muir (Baylor).