San Francisco 49ers reach playoffs with victory

San Francisco 49ers have beaten Atlanta Falcons to 34-24 at Candlestick Park to qualify for the playoffs.

In a back-and-forth contest Phil Dawson gave the 49ers a first-quarter score of 3-0 when he kicked a field goal after eight minutes.

However, the Falcons took the lead just before the 10-minute mark when Steven Jackson powered over the line after good work from Matt Ryan.

The Falcons extended their advantage with a field goal late on in the half from Matt Bryant before a third-quarter touchdown from Anquan Boldin got the 49ers back in it.

The 49ers added fourth-quarter touchdowns from Colin Kaepernick, Frank Gore and Navarro Bowman to render Tony Gonzalez and Roddy White's efforts for the Falcons meaningless.