J.K. Dobbins was frustrated in the locker room following Sunday night's playoff loss to the Bengals, feeling he should have gotten more opportunities after finishing with 62 yards on 13 carries.
Emotions were raw following the defeat that ended Baltimore's season, and Dobbins was particularly upset. In addition to his touches in the running game, Dobbins was involved as a receiver with four catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.
However, he was disappointed he did not get a carry during the drive that ended with Tyler Huntley's pivotal fumble on a quarterback sneak. That fumble early in the fourth quarter resulted in a 98-yard fumble recovery and touchdown run by Sam Hubbard, the game-deciding touchdown during Cincinnati's 24-17 victory.
Dobbins felt he should have been in the game during that drive, and that his number should have been called often.
"He (Huntley) should've never been in that situation," Dobbins said. "I don't get a single carry. I believe I would've put in the end zone.
"I'm a guy that feels that if I'm on the field all the time, I can help this team win. I wasn't. It's the playoffs. Why am I not out there? I should be the guy. I'm tired of holding back."
The Ravens rested Dobbins in Week 18 to have him fresher for the playoffs, and he felt ready to a carry a heavy load during the wild-card game. On Sunday night, the running attack was pretty evenly distributed among Dobbins, Gus Edwards (12 carries for 39 yards) and Huntley (nine carries for 54 yards).
Dobbins has always been an emotional player, and made it clear he was disappointed not having a bigger role.
"I should be the guy," Dobbins said. "I'm tired of holding that back. It's the playoffs. Let's go win the game. I'm tired of it. My teammates feed off me when I'm on the field. I should be out there all the time. That's just not the case how it goes here."
Dobbins suffered a season-ending knee injury before the 2021 season that required major surgery and rehab, then underwent microscopic knee surgery midway through this season to clean up some scar tissue. Dobbins returned with more speed and agility and ran for more than 100 yards twice during the second half of the season. He said he would work hard during the offseason to return better than ever.
"I showed people the scope was an amazing thing to do," he said. "Nothing can hold me down but God. I'll be back next year. I'll be better. I'm going to get back to my old self."
