Jason Snelling pounded away that wretched little curse.

Snelling, the Atlanta Falcons' No. 3 running back, rushed for a career-best 147 yards, and Brent Grimes grabbed a key interception, leading the Falcons to a 20-10 win Sunday against the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the season finale for both clubs.

Atlanta made history with the win.

The Falcons, who made the playoffs with an 11-5 record last season, finished this one at 9-7, posting back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in franchise history, a feat that was 44 years in the making.

With little at stake, coach Mike Smith has preached the importance of posting a winning campaign if the franchise was ever to gain any sort of relevance in the NFL. A few weeks ago, it looked like a pipe dream.

Struggling Atlanta entered its Week 15 matchup against the New York Jets with its season in shambles. Starting quarterback Matt Ryan was hurt. Michael Turner, the team’s leading rusher, could not answer the bell with an ankle injury. Makeshift was a kind word to explain the bruised and battered offensive line.

However, Ryan and Turner returned on a blustery day at the Meadowlands. And it was Ryan, who dodged snowballs from ill-spirited Jets fans, finding Tony Gonzalez in the end zone with 98 seconds left to give Falcons fans a glimmer of hope.

Atlanta took care of business against a lowly Buffalo Bills team in its home finale and stared down history on a chilly afternoon in Tampa.

Quite fittingly, in a season besieged with injuries, it was an unheralded reserve who did the bulk of the work to keep that pesky little Falcon at bay.

Snelling, who had never gained 100 yards on the ground, picked the perfect time to break triple digits. The 26-year old New Jersey native was there when Atlanta needed him the most, eating up the clock with first down after first down, masking what was a rather uneven performance by Ryan.

The curse was no more.

Jason Snelling's previous career-high was 76 yards, set earlier this season, but he almost doubled that mark Sunday.

Without further adieu, let’s get to the final 2009 edition of the good, the bad and the ugly.

The Good: Two words: Jason Snelling. He deserves the game ball for this one. The third-year pro made Falcons fans forget that Turner once again couldn’t answer the bell Sunday, grinding the ball all afternoon and helping the Falcons make history.

Grimes was also sensational, coming down with a key interception for the third consecutive game. One has to wonder if a cornerback is unable to play in the Pro Bowl whether Grimes would be on the short list of players to go to Miami as an injury replacement.

The Atlanta defense was also solid, holding Tampa Bay to 206 total yards. Tampa Bay could not muster any sort of offense on the ground, as former Auburn standout Cadillac Williams mustered just 40 yards on 19 carries in the contest.

The Bad: Was it just me, or did the bad Matt Ryan whom we saw way too much of in the middle of the season appear again Sunday?

Granted, Ryan’s overall numbers were decent, as he completed 23 of 35 passes for 223 yards and two scores. But those two picks nearly cost the Falcons the game.

Matt Ryan hadn't thrown an interception in two games since returning from injury, but he tossed two of them Sunday.

Luckily for the Falcons, they were playing against a rookie quarterback and a bad Tampa Bay team. Except for that one drive in the fourth quarter when the Bucs tied it, Josh Freeman was awful, practically answering every Atlanta miscue with one of his own.

But the Falcons had Snelling and that’s why they won this football game.

The Ugly: Curses aside, this was a terrible football game, from start to finish.

Fortunately, true football fans had an alternative to this one and were able to watch the Miami Dolphins-Pittsburgh Steelers game on CBS here in the Atlanta area.

I was not so lucky. Duty called, instead.

The second I turned the channel to FOX, it was downright ugly. As Eric Weems set the tone, fumbling the opening kickoff, I chuckled to myself, “This is going to be one of THOSE games.”

And for the most part, the game followed that oh-so-familiar script of a terrible matchup between two clubs that will be playing golf next week. There were momentum-killing interceptions, blocked field goals, three-and-outs and costly fumbles.

If the Falcons didn’t have the suspense of whether they were going to break that 44-year drought, it would have been simply untenable to watch. But in the end, the Falcons made history, giving their fans something to smile about in what was a lost season. That pesky Falcon has been shooed away. That curse has finally been lifted.

Now let’s try to get that elusive Super Bowl ring.

-- PHIL FOLEY