Sam Koch Could Miss First Game in 15-Year Career Because of COVID-19

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Sam Koch has been an ironman for the Ravens, playing in a franchise-record 239 consecutive games.

However, that streak, which has spanned over the past 15 years, is in jeopardy after Koch was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list earlier this week. Koch's latest test for the virus came back inconclusive, according to a report by ESPN.

The Ravens are scheduled to play the regular-season finale at Cincinnati on Sunday. Baltimore would make the postseason for a third straight year with a victory.

There is not another punter on the Ravens' roster and it might be too late to add a player this late in the week because of COVID-19 protocols. Koch is also the holder for kicker Justin Tucker.

Baltimore signed punter Johnny Townsend, who was with the team in training camp. Townsend would be eligible to play against the Bengals because he has already passed all of the COVID-19 protocols.

Tight end Mark Andrews took snaps as an emergency holder in this year's training camp and could be capable of handling those duties.

Still, it would be an unfortunate end to Koch's impressive streak.

In October, Koch appeared in his 230th regular-season game, surpassing the previous record held by Terrell Suggs (229 games). Koch has never missed a game since being drafted by the Ravens in 2006.

"I wanted to come out here and prove my talents were worthwhile in this league and to take it game by game," Koch said at the time. "And now I look back, and it’s 15 years, two-hundred and I don’t know what the exact number is, but two-hundred some games (230 on Sunday), and it’s like, ‘Man, that’s been quite the ride.’ But there’s so much more to prove, so much more that I can do."

In 2017, Koch posted a franchise-record and NFL-high 40 kicks inside the 20. Koch also owns a 45 .4 career gross average and 39 .6 career net, both marks that rank first in Ravens history. In 2014, he posted a career-high and team-record 47 .4-yard gross (matched again in 2018) and 43 .3-yard net average.