Atlanta Falcons’ Matt Ryan throws during the first half of the NFL football NFC championship game against the Green Bay Packers, Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
ATLANTA (AP) – Matt Ryan and Julio Jones teamed up for a dominant playoff performance, and the Atlanta Falcons ignored all those ghosts from the last half-century.
Ryan threw for 392 yards and four touchdowns in another MVP-worthy showing, while Jones shook off a toe injury to haul in nine catches for 180 yards and two scores, leading the Falcons to a 44-21 blowout of the storied Green Bay Packers in the NFC championship Sunday.
Atlanta (13-5) will face either New England or Pittsburgh in the Feb. 5 title game in Houston. It will be only the second Super Bowl appearance in the Falcons’ 51-year history, the first coming 18 years ago with a team known as the “Dirty Birds.”
They have never won an NFL championship.