I've done this for some of the other potential #1 picks (Chris Long, Vernon Gholston, and Matt Ryan), so considering that the Dolphins are exclusively negotiating with Jake Long's agent right now, it's a good time to take a look at Jake.  There's a lot of info here so it's relatively longer than most posts.  And you will have to make the jump and click "Read More" to see the entire post.

So where to begin?  I guess we'll start with the most eye-opening statistics for an offensive lineman before getting into the scouting reports on him.  Those stats?  In his 4 year career at Michigan, Long has allowed just 2 sacks and committed just 2 penalties.  The best part?  Jake can actually identify when these things happened.  He allowed a sack in 2007 against Vernon Gholston and the other was against Michigan State during his freshman season.  As for his 2 penalties, one was a false start in 2007 against Northwestern and the other was a holding back during his freshman year.  So that means he went 2 full seasons, his sophomore and junior seasons, without committing a penalty or allowing a sack.  And what's really impressive is that includes his final season at right tackle (2005) and his first season as a left tackle (2006).

For a good general scouting report, I'll defer to NFL Draft Countdown, who has Long listed as the second best prospect in the entire 2008 draft:

As we've talked a lot about here, there are indeed some concerns that Jake might not make a great left tackle in the NFL.  But, again, if the Dolphins feel comfortable in taking him first overall, then they must be pretty confident that he can play left tackle (maybe not as a rookie, but eventually) and have great success at the position.  And that's good enough for me.  After all, Tony Sparano is an offensive line coach at heart.

One of the strengths pointed out above is how dominant of a run blocker he is.  For more on that, and more on Jake Long in general, you should probably check out this article over at Maize N Brew, the finest Michigan blog anywhere on the internet.  Below, though, I have included some quotes from the article.  And we'll start out with Jake's run-blocking prowess:

How important was Jake to that Michigan program?  Maize N Brew Dave explains:

How about Jake's pass-blocking ability?  After all, that's the key to being a great left tackle as opposed to a great right tackle.  Again, Dave explains:

And lastly, what does Dave think about Jake's future?

So you all may hear the critics question Jake's ability to play left tackle and be a star in the NFL.  But I'll trust a guy like Dave from Maize N Brew, who has literally watched every snap Jake Long has ever played, over guys who just watch tape of (most likely) a few games from his senior season.

So how about we hear a little bit now from the man himself?  Below are excerpts from Jake Long's Combine press conference:

And lastly, with those rumors flying now that Jake doesn't want to be a Dolphin, here's a quote straight from Jake's mouth from the Combine press conference about playing for the Dolphins:

And for more proof that Jake isn't against coming to Miami, we turn to everybody's favorite "draft guru" - favorite to mock, that is - Mel Kiper.  In his latest chat, which is "Insider protected," Kiper is asked about rumors involving Jake not wanting to be a Dolphin:

So here's my 2 cents.  Get a deal done now and make Jake Long the pick.  I've been on the fence for a while about him, but I'm convinced he could play left tackle.  I'm not saying he's the only player I want at #1 now because I'd still be in favor of taking Chris Long or Vernon Gholston.  But to solidify this line would be HUGE for this offense.

Thoughts?