Folks who follow football may recall that the Vikings need a quarterback.

With Cam Newton unlikely to make it past Carolina (or Buffalo), that presents the men of purple with a problem. No. 12 is too early to take any of the quarterbacks that remain (I’m assuming Gabbert will be gone by then).

Draft expert Mel Kiper has them taking Jake Locker at no. 12. To which most of the contributors to this little confab today would respond, “Wha?” Perhaps it is a bit unkind to say he has the “accuracy of a drunk weatherman” but he certainly does not warrant the No. 12 pick.

So the question is, do the Vikings trade down? Or do they draft a big, bruising offensive tackle with their first rounder? Or a defensive tackle, since it appears both of the Big Williamses will be suspended for the first four games of 2011?

The other option of course, is that they draft a defensive end — Aldon Smith, say. The difficulty there is that such a pick would tip their hand as to how they expect negotiations to go with Ray Edwards, their 2006 fourth-round pick who has emerged as one of the league’s best defensive ends. If the Vikes can’t move down to the lower half of the first, and don’t plan on paying Edwards, expect to see a DT off the board at No. 12.