Bengals 2017 season awards: Most disappointing player of the year

The Cincinnati Bengals followed up one disappointing campaign with another in 2017. A slow start to the year definitely hindered their ability to get to the postseason, even though they ended up making things interesting in the month of November.

There were no shortages of poor individual performances from players this season. Since football is a team sport, we hate to call out specific individuals, but sometimes the film speaks for itself.

Cast your vote for the Bengals’ most disappointing player of 2017 and sound off in the comments on your nominee!

Cedric Ogbuehi, offensive tackle: The former first round pick is starting to look like a bust at tackle. He didn’t play well in 2016 on the right side and 2017 showcased more issues from him at one of the most important positions in football.

It’s a shame because we saw quite a bit of dedication from Ogbuehi this offseason in getting into better shape, etc., but it just didn’t translate on the field. His best play at Texas A & M was when he played guard, so maybe they give him a look there with new line coach Frank Pollack calling the shots?

Russell Bodine, center: Everybody’s favorite whipping boy showed some things on tape that displayed egregious play. Even so, he and the rest of the line showed some improvement late in the year.

But, Bodine, along with Ogbuehi, were consistently giving up pressures and allowing Andy Dalton to get hit throughout the entire season. Have a look:

Tyler Boyd, wide receiver: Yes, Boyd missed six games this year with injuries and such, but one would think that with John Ross being a non-factor, he would have been a bigger part of the offseason this season. As a rookie, Boyd flashed with 54 catches for 603 yards and two touchdowns (one receiving, one rushing).

While he had two touchdown grabs this year, Boyd’s numbers dipped drastically almost definitively across the board. He had just 22 catches for 225 yards along with two touchdowns. He did have the awesome back-breaking touchdown against the Ravens in the season finale, though.

John Ross, wide receiver: What a disastrous rookie year from the No. 9 overall pick. Unfortunately, many of the factors contributing to the trouble weren’t his fault, as he was dealing with injuries and a head coach who refused to let him out of the doghouse.

Ross played just 17 snaps on offense, didn’t net a catch and fumbled away the football on his only touch of the year. He has a lot of work to do in his second season if he is to help an offense who desperately needs his speed and play-making ability.

Dre Kirkpatrick, cornerback: Cincinnati allowed Andrew Whitworth and Kevin Zeitler walk in free agency, but they did retain another one of their internal priorities in Kirkpatrick. He signed a lucrative five-year, $52.5 million deal in the offseason, likely ensuring his entire career would be with the Bengals.

No. 27 didn’t respond the best way, though. He only had one interception on the year and was repeatedly nailed for interference and illegal contact penalties. He became the NFL’s most penalized defensive player since 2015 during last season and seemed to have been outplayed by William Jackson and even Darqueze Dennard, at times.