In Week 12, Ryan suffered a turf toe injury during the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Chris Redman stepped in and managed to win the game by connecting to Roddy White for a five-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Following this victory, however, the effect of Ryan's absence was compounded by injury to starting running back Michael Turner, and the Falcons suffered a 34–17 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles and a 26–23 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Weeks 13 and 14. In Week 15, Ryan returned, despite not yet having fully recovered from his injury, and led Atlanta to a 10–7 upset win against the New York Jets.