Despite all the colors, flash and bling of the NFL draft, perhaps the most noticeable fashion choice came from a player who did not even wear a suit.

Danny Shelton's mother is Samoan. In fact, Shelton lived the first three years of his life in Samoa with his grandparents.

The former Washington defensive tackle honored his roots Thursday night. When the Cleveland Browns made Shelton the 12th pick of the draft Thursday in Chicago, he took the stage wearing a long maroon skirt, a matching maroon and white vest, and special neckpiece.

"I've got the chief necklace on right now," Shelton said. "It's called the Ula Fala, and my uncle is the chief of the family, and he let me borrow it for this night."

The neckpiece is made of pandanus fruit dried and painted red. Shelton's decision to go with a traditional look was a follow-up to his wearing a black and gold lava-lava, a Samoan skirt, at the Senior Bowl.

Shelton, listed at 6-2 and 339 pounds, also has a series of Samoan tattoos as well as a special one he got as a freshman at Washington that reads for "Search for the Truth." The words were inked on Shelton's upper chest just a few months after he witnessed his brother Shennon shot to death in a gang fight. His brother Gaston was also shot but survived. Shelton wore a pin for Shennon on Thursday.


A few short years after Shelton nearly quit football as a reaction to his brother's death, the 21-year-old became a Cleveland Brown and did so in style.

"I want to be all about my culture and represent," he said. "Back in the day, this is what they wore at home and at work."

One guy who may be around Shelton in Cleveland is Johnny Manziel LeBron James, a noted Browns fan.

"I'll be excited if he actually comes down and sees me, but that's going to be one thing I want to do," Shelton said. "I want to go out and watch a game, me and him hopefully, but big fan."

As for his football idol, Shelton has an affinity for a fellow Pacific Islander star who now plays in Detroit.

"I just try to outwork everybody, but somebody who I've looked up to a lot is Haloti Ngata," said Shelton, who also mentioned former Steelers safety Troy Polamalu as an inspiration.

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-- Follow Jeffrey Eisenband on Twitter @JeffEisenband.