Chargers’ Jared Gaither looks to help beat former team

Jared Gaither went from a left tackle to a tackle left behind.

Sunday, the former Baltimore Ravens blocker will play a pivotal role — good or bad — for the San Diego Chargers.

Gaither, released by the Ravens after last season, has started the last two games at left tackle for the Chargers, ably protecting the blind side of quarterback Philip Rivers in victories over Jacksonville and Buffalo. The Chargers signed him after he was cut by Kansas City three weeks ago.

The position has been a soft spot for San Diego since Pro Bowl left tackle Marcus McNeill suffered a neck injury against Oakland on Nov. 10. Gaither has done a good job filling that vacancy on short notice.

Ravens Coach John Harbaugh said he watched the tape of Gaither’s two performances and, “I was like, wow.”

But a tougher test will come against Baltimore outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, who leads the AFC with 13 sacks, seven in the last three games.

“He’s beaten a lot of different tackles a lot of different ways,” Gaither said this week, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. “He comes with the total array.”

The 6-foot-9, 340-pound Gaither was a converted big man who only played two seasons of college football at Maryland. He was selected by the Ravens in the fifth round of the supplemental draft in 2007 and eventually stepped in at left tackle when All-Pro Jonathan Ogden retired.

Gaither started 26 of 27 Baltimore games he played in in 2008 and 2009, but frustrated his coaches before the 2010 season when he showed up at camp 30 pounds lighter than expected, and he was later put on injured reserve because of a back injury, sitting out the entire season.

Chargers Coach Norv Turner said the addition of Gaither has “had an impact on Philip.”

Now, it’s Gaither’s job to make sure he’s the one making that impact, not the Ravens.

— Sam Farmer