Ravens' Jared Gaither Taken Off Field on Stretcher in New England

Baltimore Ravens left tackle Jared Gaither was carried off the field on a stretcher in New England Sunday afternoon after suffering what appeared to be a neck injury in a second-quarter collision with quarterback Joe Flacco.

The collision took place on a play on which Flacco was hit hard from both his right and his left, and as Gaither attempted to protect Flacco, he was spun around and his own head ended up hitting Flacco's back. Initially it looked like a collision that would hurt Flacco more than it hurt Gaither, but Flacco got back up while Gaither stayed on the ground.

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Play was halted for several minutes while medical personnel attended to Gaither, who appeared to be conscious and capable of moving his extremities. He was eventually carted to the locker room on a stretcher. Gaither's family was reportedly in the stands in New England and went down to the locker room to be with him.

Rookie right tackle Michael Oher was moved to left tackle to take Gaither's place, while Marshal Yanda came in at right tackle.

UPDATE: Gaither was reportedly taken to Massachusetts General Hospital for tests on his neck and shoulders. He has movement in all extremities. "It sounded like he was OK and it was more a precautionary thing," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said.