Here are the Falcons’ grades for the scintillating 30-28 victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at the Georgia Dome.

GAME BALL: Tight end Tony Gonzalez for earning his first playoff win, that acrobatic touchdown grab and for setting up the game-winning field goal. “Tony is Mr. Reliable. He’s so consistent; he did a great job with the route and created separation to give me a good window to throw it,” quarterback Matt Ryan said.

C – Quarterbacks: Ryan was clutch in the final minute of the game, but his fourth-quarter interception was nearly fatal. He completed 24 of 35 passes for 250 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. Ryan had a quarterback rating of 93.8. He had a 71.2 rating in his three previous playoff games. Ryan broke quarterback Steve Bartkowski’s franchise record for career postseason touchdowns with six and tied both Chris Chandler (Jan. 17, 1999 at Minnesota) and Chris Miller (Dec. 28, 1991  at New Orleans) for the most touchdown passes in a single postseason game with three.

A – Running backs: Behind strong showings from Michael Turner and Jacquizz Rodgers, the Falcons rushed for a season-high 167 yards on 26 carries. The 6.4 yards per carry was 2.7 yards better than their 3.7 regular season average. The tosses and pitches to the outside that offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter called, allowed Turner to get up a head of steam. Those plays also gave the blockers some better angles. The Falcons previous high this season was 146 yards against Philadelphia on Oct. 28.

B -- Wide receivers: Roddy White won the battle with Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman. (How are you going to talk all game and then after the game not speak to the media? That was pretty weak of Sherman.) White had five catches for 76 yards. Sherman had three pass breakups. Julio Jones fought through double coverage to catch six passes for 59 yards. Gonzalez’ 1-yard touchdown catch was spectacular. Backup tight end Chase Coffman had a nice grab along the sideline, too.

A -- Offensive Line: The unit did a great job of springing the running backs. The left side of tackle Sam Baker and guard Justin Blalock busted Turner loose on his 33-yard gain and the right side of tackle Tyson Clabo and guard Peter Konz set Rodgers on his way for his 45-yard gain. “It’s something that we had to get going because they play eight men in the box,” Baker said. “They were going to dare us to run it. We had some good schemes.”

B -- Defensive line: The defensive line played a big role in stopping Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch. He was held to 46 yards rushing on 16 carries. They won the battle for the line of scrimmage. Jonathan Babineaux had a really strong game with a fumble recovery, a sack and two quarterback hits. They didn’t get an A because they weren’t able to mount consistent pressure against Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson.

A -- Linebackers: Akeem Dent (eight tackles), Stephen Nicholas (five) and Sean Weatherspoon (eight) took turns laying wood on Lynch. They were stout against the run.

D -- Defensive backs: Head coach Mike Smith was not pleased with the coverage. The team spent entire practice sessions working on their scramble and plaster tactics. They knew Wilson would extend plays because they saw it 145 times over 17 games of film. They were fine with the scramble part, but clearly were not plastered over the receivers. Tight end Zach Miller had eight catches for 142 yards and the secondary failed to keep track of him on his crossing routes. Golden Tate had six catches for 103 yards. William Moore, who was playing for the first time since the New Orleans game on Nov. 29, made his presence felt on the fourth-and-1 stop of Seattle fullback Michael Robinson.

C -- Special teams: Matt Bryant nailed the game winner, but the grade is low because punter Matt Bosher shanked a couple of punts and mis-hit the final kickoff when the Falcons were trying to squib kick. Rogers had a big 34-yard return to set up the final drive. The kickoff coverage unit let Leon Washington out for a 37-yard return.

C -- Coaches: Koetter called a great game for three quarters, but lost his magic touch in the fourth quarter. The offense could only muster one first down over three drives in the fourth quarter when they needed a drive to ice the game. The defense collapsed in the second half as Wilson continually found gaping holes in the zone defenses. The Falcons did run the ball and stop the run. The special teams units will need to kick it up a notch against San Francisco, too.  

NEXT UP: The Falcons (14-3) face the San Francisco 49ers (12-4-1) at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Georgia Dome in the NFC championship game.

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