The Niners celebrate their NFC Championship clinching victory over Atlanta. (AP)
ATLANTA — Patrick Willis cannot forget the feeling he had one year ago as he sat in the locker room at Candlestick Park.
“I was numb,’’ the 49ers linebacker recalled. “You’re like wow, this is how it ends.’’
The way it ended last year was agonizing, a special-teams turnover in overtime leading to the Giants’ game-winning field goal and celebration. The 49ers swore that failure would strengthen their resolve to get back, and when they did, to finish the job this time.
Instead, the 49ers nearly were finished when they fell behind 17-0 in the cauldron of noise called the Georgia Dome, with the attacking Falcons dominating at home, making it look easy. But where they came up short last season, the Niners this time around rode the passing brilliance of kid quarterback Colin Kaepernick and finally applied the defensive clamps, pitching a second-half shutout that resulted in a 28-24 victory in an NFC Championship Game that showed how much the team has grown.
“I’m a little numb now, it feels almost surreal,’’ Willis said in a relatively calm winning locker room. “Now we have the opportunity to go play for the main goal, the Super Bowl.’’
The 49ers (13-4-1) are headed to New Orleans for Super Bowl XLVII — where coach Jim Harbaugh will face older brother John’s Ravens team after Baltimore upset the Patriots, 28-13 in the AFC title game — because they were able to right the ship and pull within 24-14 at halftime then completely stifle a Falcons passing attack.
Matt Ryan had been playing pitch-and-catch with Julio Jones (11 catches, 182 yards, 2 TDs), Roddy White (7-100) and Tony Gonzalez (8-78, 1 TD), but Ryan turned the ball over twice in the second half. And the Niners took the lead for the first time with 8:23 remaining when Frank Gore ran untouched for 9 yards.
The last time the Niners made the Super Bowl was following the 1994 season, when they went to overwhelm the Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX to raise their Super Bowl record to 5-0.
One week after setting an NFL record for a quarterback with 181 rushing yards against the Packers, Kaepernick — making just his ninth NFL start — stood in the pocket and fired darts. He ran just twice for 21 yards, but the Falcons were so concerned about him at times they forgot about Gore (21 carries, 90 yards, 2 TDs) and were caught napping as tight end Vernon Davis (5 catches, 106 yards, 1 TD) ran free.
“I don’t even know the words to say it … it was just a great performance by the quarterback,’’ said Jim Harbaugh, whose midseason switch to Kaepernick from steady Alex Smith re-shaped the offense.
As the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the Falcons (14-4) finally broke through in the postseason with last week’s victory over the Seahawks but not before blowing a 20-point fourth-quarter lead. As Ryan tossed two scoring passes to Jones and the Falcons raced to a 17-0 lead, the 49ers reminded each other of Atlanta’s penchant for getting big leads and letting them slip away.
“Yeah, we said we feel like we were a better team than Seattle, and if they did it, we can do it,’’ Gore said.
After Gore’s fourth-quarter score, the Falcons mounted a drive, starting on their own 20 and reaching the 49ers 10-yard line. On fourth down, Ryan was pressured and threw over the middle but behind White as linebacker NaVorro Bowman knocked the ball away with 1:09 remaining.
“We fell a little bit short,’’ said Ryan, who threw for 396 yards but lost a fumble and tossed an interception to Chris Culliver in a sluggish second half.
The 49ers trailed 24-21 after a 5-yard Gore run with 10:47 remaining in the third quarter, but failed to capitalize on two scoring chances. David Akers missed a 38-yard field goal attempt. The Niners got the ball back when Ryan fumbled a shotgun snap and Aldon Smith recovered on the 49ers 37-yard line. From the Falcons’ 5, Michael Crabtree made a catch at the 1-yard line, tried to spin into the end zone and instead was stripped of the ball by Dunta Robinson as William Moore slammed into Crabtree. Linebacker Stephen Nicholas made the recovery to preserve the Falcons’ lead.
Not for long.
“It’s amazing,’’ Davis said. “It’s something I’ve been dreaming of all my life, as a kid, the Super Bowl, going to the Super Bowl, and we’re here. We’re happy today, but to be truly happy and satisfied we have to win it all.’’
paul.schwartz@nypost.com