Ray Rice says he wanted to play Sunday, team opted to limit his playing time

CINCINNATI -- — Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice said he was surprised to arrive at Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday morning and learn that coach John Harbaugh wanted to rest him in a regular-season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Ultimately, Rice wound up playing one series and rushing for 5 yards on three carries and registering a personal foul for his exchange with Bengals rookie middle linebacker Vontaze Burfict.

"I actually didn't know anything," Rice said. "I practiced the whole week. Until I got here, they said, 'You know what, you're down,' and then, 'You're up,' I was like OK. I wanted to go. I had my juices flowing.

"I was prepared to play all week, so when I got the call that I was going to be down, then up, I was prepared for war. I went out there and gave it all I got for the amount of snaps I had."

With Rice not playing for the majority of the game, backup rookie Bernard Pierce rushed for a game-high 89 yards on 22 carries.

Rice said he wasn't looking for time off necessarily, but understood the decision.

"It was a coaching decision," Rice said. "I had nothing to do with that. It was coach Harbaugh's decision. If I was up, I was up. If I was down, I wwas down. If I was up, I was going to give it 150 percent, and that's what I did."

awilson@baltsun.com

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