Earlier on Monday, Tom Curran of NBCSports.com reported that the Miami Dolphins were close to a deal with Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long that would make him the No. 1 overall selection in the draft, and that would put him under contract for up to six years.

There’s now a similar report in the Palm Beach Post.

The unnamed source who provided the info to the Post claims that the Fins didn’t provide a deadline to Long, and that the Fins have not negotiated with any other players.

 And those two statements are enough to get us to believe that the report is, was, and will be hogwash.

Surely, the Fins and Bill “My Way Or The Highway . . . And A Foot Up Your Ass” Parcells would have to do everything in their power to squeeze Long into considering the offer, especially since Parcells is by all appearances committed to paying the No. 1 overall pick in 2008 less than what the first selection received in 2007.  Absent such hardball tactics, the only deal that Jake Long would be doing is the JaMarcus Russell package, plus 15 percent.

So we think that these reports are all part of the broader ruse to get another player to jump on an offer that currently is on the table.  And we suspect that the other player in question is Ohio State linebacker/defensive end Vernon Gholston.