There's only one wrong choice at No. 12

Look around. Most of the building blocks of the Vikings are all draft picks — Adrian Peterson, Percy Harvin, Sidney Rice, Chad Greenway, E.J. Henderson and Kevin Williams.

There are the exceptions — Jared Allen, Steve Hutchinson, Antoine Winfield.

But since Rick Spielman took over as the Vikings' general manager he has been pretty spot-on in the early rounds. This 2011 draft, forget about focusing in on one position.

Believe me, every possibility sounds good if you think about it long enough. Yeah it would be nice to see Julio Jones lined up across from Rice, with Harvin in the slot. And Cameron Jordan or Aldon Smith could wreak havoc on the other side of Allen. Prince Amukamara could be a great cover corner to plug in from day one.

Don't worry about the offensive line in the draft. Minnesota's defense needs playmakers. But you couldn't even be mad if the Vikings picked an offensive lineman who ended up being a mainstay on the line for years to come.

The only wrong pick is staying at No. 12 and reaching on a quarterback that isn't nearly as talented as the other options.

Andy Dalton and Jake Locker may be whom the Vikings want to end up with as their quarterback. That's fine. Trade up back into the first round then and snag one of them then. At this point, it's more important to come away from this draft with something.

I'm not so sure.

Dalton is a nice player. He's smart, a leader. His completion rate in college is where you want it to be. And even though he played against lesser competition while at TCU, he played above average against Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, and the Horned Frogs won the game. Dalton can step in day one and be a game manager.

But does he have the arm strength to make all of the throws in the NFL? Can he take his game to the next level and be an above average quarterback in the NFL? Or would the Vikings be drafting a Brad Johnson with less arm strength?

What about Jake Locker? I see him as a right-handed Tim Tebow, without the delivery issues. He's a great athlete, a great leader and has a big arm — everything in between is fuzzy. Can he make the precision passes necessary in the Vikings' offense? Or will he be surrounded by enough quality skill position players to succeed?

The argument that he wasn't accurate in college because he played with inferior talent doesn't really hold up. He may have less time to throw in the NFL. He can be taught to be a bit more accurate, but how much so?

There will always be questions with any quarterback the Vikings take. But don't take one at No. 12 just because they absolutely need one. Worst case scenario, Donovan McNabb is Minnesota's starting quarterback for a year.

If the Vikings can trade back and pick up an extra pick in the first three rounds, Spielman would have even more ammunition. That's the way to go.

Since 2007, only Marcus McCauley (3rd round '07) could be considered a bust. The jury's still out on Tyrell Johnson and both second round picks from last year. But he's also found gems in later rounds like Brian Robison, Jamarca Sanford and Letroy Guion, who have ranged from starter to productive backup.

Minnesota needs more of those — stars, starters, productive backups — anything that can help this team win now. Stars preferred.

But let's be realistic.