After being eliminated from the playoffs, the Falcons committed themselves to finishing off the season strong.

The Falcons completed that journey with a 19-17 win over the Saints on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium that was sealed by a late-game interception from cornerback Dee Alford.

Kicker Zane Gonzalez made his fourth field goal, a 38-yarder, with 2:52 to play.

The Saints added a 16-yard touchdown pass to Ronnie Bell with 1:11 to play. Kyle Pitts recovered the announced onside kick and the Falcons ran out the clock.

The Falcons finished the season 8-9 and won their final four games. The Saints, who had won four in a row, finished the season at 6-11 and in last place in the NFC South.

With the Falcons win, the Panthers (8-9) will represent the division in the playoffs as the No. 4 seed. They held the head-to-head tiebreakers over the Buccaneers (8-9) and Falcons.

“You still have the disappointment that we set out as a goal to win the division,” Pro Bowl guard Chris Lindstrom said. “The goal to make the playoffs. We fell short of that.”

The Falcons did close out the season strong, when they could have quit.

“I feel, this feels good, to have this at the end of the season as a testament to the work that we put in,” Lindstrom said. “But at the end of the day still understanding that it’s not good enough. The fans deserve better. We want better and make it into the playoffs. I’m proud of the guys for not folding at the end of the year and really pushing down the stretch.”

Quarterback Kirk Cousins, who was under duress and sacked four times, completed 18-of-32 passes for 180 yards. He had a touchdown, an interception and finished with a passer rating of 69.8.

“It’s always a positive when you can finish the season on a win,” Cousins said. “It’s always a strange feeling when you’re not going into the playoffs.”

Saints rookie quarterback Tyler Shough was solid, finishing 23-for-35 passing for 259 yards, a touchdown pass and an interception. He also added a rushing touchdown.

Alford’s interception was key.

“We noticed that he kept throwing slants to (wide side of) the field,” Falcons linebacker Divine Deablo said. “So Dee talked to me right before the play. He said, ‘Are you with me?’ I told him I was with him. So I pushed toward the first slant window, and he played the second.”

The special teams set up the Falcons’ first touchdown drive with a blocked punt by Jammie Robinson. Feleipe Franks recovered the punt.

Cousins tossed a 15-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Drake London in the back of the end zone to make it 7-0.

Zane Gonzalez added a 40-yard field in the second quarter to make it 10-0.

Shough scored on a one-yard run, and the Falcons led 10-7 at the half.

The Falcons tied the franchise sack record in the first half with sacks from Kentavius Street and Alford. The defense broke the mark of 55 sacks in a season (set by the 1997 team) in the third quarter with a sack from James Pearce Jr. with 12:20 to play. He added another sack to make it 57.

Pearce finished this season 10.5 sacks. The last time the Falcons had a player with double digit sacks was Vic Beasley (15.5) in 2016.

Charlie Smyth made a 29-yard field goal with under three minutes to play in the third quarter to make it 13-10.