The Falcons had a down year, where they recorded a 4–12 record due to multiple injuries and losing key players on both sides of the ball. Ryan did record some impressive individual performances in the down season. In Week 2, against the St. Louis Rams, he had 374 passing yards and two touchdowns in the 31–24 victory. Against the New England Patriots in Week 4, he was 34-of-54 for a then career-high 421 yards with two touchdowns and one interception in the 30–23 loss. In his performance against the Patriots, Ryan became the first quarterback in franchise history to have multiple games with at least 400 passing yards. Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 7, he was 20-of-26 for 273 yards and three touchdowns for a 148.4 passer rating in the 31–23 victory to earn NFC Offensive Player of the Week. After the victory, the Falcons were 2–4 with all the losses being by a combined 19 points. However, the rest of the season collapsed starting with five consecutive losses, which the team never recovered from. In Week 8, against the Arizona Cardinals, he had a career-high 61 pass attempts for 301 yards, one touchdown, and four interceptions in the 27–13 loss.