If Gaither showed up to practice...

[TL24x7]

I'm guessing he was referring to the article where you said the Ravens should bring Gaither back AFTER Week 1.

Even then, your thought was "if Gaither's salary isn't guaranteed, there's no risk in giving him a 2nd chance".

Ok...that makes sense....they still might get that chance but after seeing this, I'm not sure that's even worth it.

I was wrrrrr

[edtude]

*fade in from black*

ANNOUNCER: In a world… where no one will protect you…

*rapid-fire video montage of Joe Flacco and Matt Cassel being repeatedly and violently sacked*

Friday…

*ominous music plays*

August 19...

*sound of hammer and anvil*

The Baltimore Ravens visit the Kansas City Chiefs...

*sound of football pads colliding at high speed*

Two warriors…

*more ominous music*

Gaither

versus

Cousins

*sound of distant screams, horror-movie-style*

Two men enter…

One man leaves…

Well, I mean if he feels like it, and isn't busy or something…

*sound of football players tackling, grunting*

On the gridiron it's lack of talent versus lack of work ethic…

*sound of an X-box video game*

*still shot of Gaither standing around with his belly hanging out of his shirt*

*still shot of Cousins fighting with his own teammates*

*fade to black*

*sound of frightened little boy asking, "Mommy, are bad offensive tackles real?"

FRIDAY. NIGHT. FOOTBALL.

Dude you have way too much time on your hand, but that was hilarious!

[Beau Petard]

I guess I'm not using enough smileys/emoticons!

Honestly, I don't hate Gaither, I don't think he's fat, I don't know what his true issues were/are, I just want a guy who can play well on the O-line at one of the tackles. In fact, there was another thread discussing Gaither where I posted that maybe we'll get to learn the real truth behind all of the stories, rumors, innuendo and whatever that surround the guy. If his timing of a bad back and mysterious spasms coincides with training camp and/or contract negotiations, that makes me wonder about certain things. But if he couldn't pass a physical by an NFL franchise's team, that makes me ask other certain questions. If he's barely able to walk/practice with the Ravens, then becomes Jim Parker with the Chefs, I'm scratching my head trying to figure out what's going on.

I'd just be interested to know what's what with Gaither.

[HoustonRaven]

Who here "hates" Gaither?!?!

Or is this one of those times if you criticize someone, you're labeled a hater?

[edtude]

Ummm, last year, same player, same reaction.

He is simply HATED by the average Baltimore fan. It doesn't matter what he does, it's wrong.
He's skinny, and the fans complain he sat on his ass, and that his frame would require him to work hard to stay at 340 or higher.
This year, he's back up to ideal playing weight, and the jealous Ravens fans call him fat....

It's pretty humorous sour grapes. Wait until he plays well against us this week, the board as a whole will find a way to slam him down, even if he grossly outperforms Quentin Aaron.

Sorry but I have to disagree with you. I don't care whether he wears a Ravens jersey or not. A bum is a bum. I thought Jamarcus Russel was going to be a stud for the Ravens but once he started to make that long slide into meathead-dom he is fair game and I criticized him. I thought Michael Vick would never be anything more than a one trick pony but I am happy to say I was wrong. He has learned to play the position of QB and use more than his legs and is a blast to watch. I don't care what team a stud plays for, I love football and if you have talent I will watch. It is a damned shame about Jared because the guy has the potential to be a stud. I think it is incredible to watch a huge LT swallow up Freeny, Harrison, Allen, or even Suggs. It amazes me and if Jared ever gets his shit together I will enjoy watching him do it

[jonboy79]

Who here "hates" Gaither?!?!

Or is this one of those times if you criticize someone, you're labeled a hater?

First, to the post above this, I would be very curious to hear the whole truth behind the Gaither fiasco. It is an onion with many, many layers I'm sure.

Onto this post, hater is being thrown around in an internet bully way. No one probably HATES the guy to the point where they are actually trying to take food off the man's table. I will give you that.

But the entire board and Ravens fandom to a much lesser extent, is so hell bent on being pro-Oher and anti-Gaither that it has become silly. It's a mad rush toi judge against Gaither, and make excuses for Quentin Aaron's shortcomings.

The only thing I really know or care about, was that on Sundays, when they both suited up, there was no comparison who the better player was. Yet that never seemed to matter to anyone else(FO , coaching staff included).


Wouldn't it be amazing if we had someone in house so that Oher could start at RT and possibly be the best in the league there, while also being the very best backuop LT in football? To have two affordable LT's under 25, both on the rise? In March and April of last year it seemed very attainable. Now I never see a situation that good in Baltimore ever again. A lot went on in between, including Jared acting like an infant, but it was positively a two way street that is not recognized by most.


Put simply, wasn't EVERYONE complaining about Gaither weighing 20 pounds under known ideal playing weight? So what is the problem when a lineman gets back to that weight with some slop before camp? These guys are GOING to drop weight once the practices begin. He will trim down, he has no choice.
I understand it would have been better for him to go to the gym and pack 20 on the right way, but there are very few linemen in the league that trim and disciplined. It's also to the point that shear mass was a step in the right direction for Jared, adding weight of any kind would both help him anchor in pass pro and exert more force in the running game.

I know he's not Mother Teresa but give him a little bt of a break. We don't know what ever was up with his back, and he may have turned over a new leaf or six with the change of scenery.

In this case, you can't have both sides of the coin. Many of you calling him fat were the same people complaining about the weight drp[ last year. You can pick one, not both.

[HoustonRaven]

First, to the post above this, I would be very curious to hear the whole truth behind the Gaither fiasco. It is an onion with many, many layers I'm sure.

Onto this post, hater is being thrown around in an internet bully way. No one probably HATES the guy to the point where they are actually trying to take food off the man's table. I will give you that.

But the entire board and Ravens fandom to a much lesser extent, is so hell bent on being pro-Oher and anti-Gaither that it has become silly ....

... and here is where I stopped reading.

This board has been brutally honest with BOTH Gaither and Oher so I am not sure you can make that claim hold water.

As to Gaither, a modest review of news articles and scouting reports of him coming out of college state he's lazy, a malcontent, etc. Nothing he has done in the pros counters that observation that has been made by dozens of people.

[jonboy79]

... and here is where I stopped reading.

This board has been brutally honest with BOTH Gaither and Oher so I am not sure you can make that claim hold water.

As to Gaither, a modest review of news articles and scouting reports of him coming out of college state he's lazy, a malcontent, etc. Nothing he has done in the pros counters that observation that has been made by dozens of people.

I don't disagree at all, I just don't care since he' was the best LT on the team by a fair margin, and not treated as such.

[B-more Ravor]

But the entire board and Ravens fandom to a much lesser extent, is so hell bent on being pro-Oher and anti-Gaither that it has become silly. It's a mad rush toi judge against Gaither, and make excuses for Quentin Aaron's shortcomings.

Hmm, with this mocking reference, now who is doing the "hating"?

I don't disagree at all, I just don't care since he' was the best LT on the team by a fair margin, and not treated as such.

That often happens when people are disappointed by someone's lack of dedication and when they see someone pissing away their talent!

[Shas]

I finally washed my hands of the idea that the Ravens would or should try to keep Gaither. But that realization didn't come easily and still doesn't sit entirelly well with me.

To those who can easily write him off as a bum, I have no problem with that. Good for you.

But I can't quite dismiss him so glibly.

While there was a lot of crazy shit that has circled the guy, the truth is that when he played, he played well. Very well. He was like the crazy girlfriend who was good in the sack. You know it was time to move on, but it's hard to let go.

Part of me is afraid he'll get his act together and be a real steal for the Chiefs. And part of me hopes he flames out spectacularly and all the haters are right about him.

It's hard to know what to think. Did the team blow it by not taking a second round pick for him when they could? Was that ever a viable option? Will he ever be a healthy player? How big a hinderance was his attitude and brains? Is he in line for a suspension?

The guy is an enigma, not easily loved, not easily dismissed.

[BLSmokey]

Jared Gaither is in Kansas City and hasn't even suited up for the Ravens since 2009.

He's moved on. Some fans need to as well.

Personally, I wish him well.

[jonboy79]

That often happens when people are disappointed by someone's lack of dedication and when they see someone pissing away their talent!

I don't know how a Ravens can be disappointed by what this guy did on sundays. It's very easy to be disappointed by the noticeably worse production we have gotten at the tackle positions since his departure

[HoustonRaven]

That often happens when people are disappointed by someone's lack of dedication and when they see someone pissing away their talent!

[Paintballguy]

Jared Gaither is in Kansas City and hasn't even suited up for the Ravens since 2009.

He's moved on. Some fans need to as well.

Personally, I wish him well.

this x1000

[Shas]

Jared Gaither is in Kansas City and hasn't even suited up for the Ravens since 2009.

He's moved on. Some fans need to as well.

Personally, I wish him well.

It would be easier to be magnanomous if the Ravens had a more secure solution worked out at tackle, and it was simply a matter of letting a guy go for money, or for inability to get the job done any more. But that's not why they let him walk. He is more talented than the options they have on the roster now, but far less reliable, through his own fault, or perhaps not. It is hard not to be bothered by the whole affair. But you're right, it's time to move on.

[Paintballguy]

It would be easier to be magnanomous if the Ravens had a more secure solution worked out at tackle, and it was simply a matter of letting a guy go for money, or for inability to get the job done any more. But that's not why they let him walk. He is more talented than the options they have on the roster now, but far less reliable, through his own fault, or perhaps not. It is hard not to be bothered by the whole affair. But you're right, it's time to move on.

The bottom line is the Ravens FO couldn't rely on Gaither to play.The Chiefs only gave him a 1 year deal, and he's backing up their starting LT.

[Shas]

The bottom line is the Ravens FO couldn't rely on Gaither to play.The Chiefs only gave him a 1 year deal, and he's backing up their starting LT.

I guess that's true if all you focus on is the bottom line

If you scan above the bottom line, you see a lot of other lines describing a slew of pros and a lot of cons when it comes to Gaither. And a lot of in-between-the-lines inuendo that describe a whole other drama. I can't think of another player in the history of the team that disappointed me more. Bam Morris? Elvis Grbac is probably the closest I can think of.

So maybe what I'm saying is that the bottom line isn't really simply that he is a back-up tackle on a one year deal.

The bottom line, for me, is that he's a first-round talent who has not been able to elevate beyond what you'd expect from the fifth-round supplemental draft pick he began his career as.

[jonboy79]

The bottom line is the Ravens FO couldn't rely on Gaither to play.The Chiefs only gave him a 1 year deal, and he's backing up their starting LT.

Ok, so he's inrelaible. So you are so scared that you might have to play his backup that you simply make his lesser talented backup the starter? That didn't make you better, it made you worse.

Yes, 4-5 practices in, Jared Gaither is backing up someone who should be playing LG at an extremely high level, but instead is not very good at all at LT.

[festivus]

The regular season hasn't started yet.

I'm still not convinced he'll step on the field during the regular season. He sure doesn't look ready for the preseason.

@ Jonboy: This isn't about Oher vs. Gaither. They are two different players, with different strengths and weaknesses. On display for the world to see is one of Gaither's weaknesses: he can't his his s**t together.

[Beau Petard]

jon--
"Put simply, wasn't EVERYONE complaining about Gaither weighing 20 pounds under known ideal playing weight?"

With clear conscience, I can say I was not.

As far as Gaither's "fatness", my comment still stands regarding ANY O-lineman --
didja EVER see a thin-waisted, six-pack abs guy playing center, tackle or guard? Even the guys who look to be in shape have a gut to some extent. And I suspect if you were at the Chefs practice where Tony's posted pic was taken, Gaither probably is a victim of the angle from which he was shot.