This Day in History (Boston Red Sox enjoys offseason)

1943 — The Green Bay Packers grab nine interceptions, seven off Frank Sinkwich, in a 27-6 victory over the Detroit Lions. 1948 — Chicago’s Bill Blackburn returns two interceptions for touchdowns to highlight a 35-point third quarter as the Cardinals beat the Boston Yanks 49-27. 1965 — Fran Tarkenton of the Minnesota Vikings passes for 407 yards and three touchdowns in a thrilling 42-41 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. 1976 — Chuck Foreman of the Minnesota Vikings rushes for 200 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-12 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. 1979 — San Diego’s Dan Fouts sets an NFL record with his fourth consecutive 300-yard game with 303 yards, but the Chargers lose 45-22 to the Oakland Raiders. 1992 — The Toronto Blue Jays take baseball’s championship outside the United States for the first time, beating the Atlanta Braves 4-3 in 11 innings in Game 6 of the World Series. 1993 — Eric Metcalf returns two punts for touchdowns to give the Cleveland Browns a 28-23 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Metcalf’s first touchdown is a team-record 91 yarder and the other goes for 75 yards with 2:05 left in the game. 1994 — Atlanta’s Greg Maddux becomes the first pitcher to win three straight Cy Young Awards, unanimously sweeping the NL honor. 1998 — Ricky Williams of Texas becomes the leading scorer in NCAA Division I history with 428 career points, scoring two touchdowns in a 30-20 victory over Baylor. 2003 — Se Ri Pak becomes the first woman to make the two-round cut in a men’s golf tournament since Babe Zaharias in 1945. Pak shoots a 2-over 74 on the Korean tour for a 2-over 146 halfway through the $250,000 SBS Super Tournament. Pak finishes tied for 29th place. 2004 — The New England Patriots extend their NFL victory streak to 21 games with a 13-7 win over the AFC East rival New York Jets. The Patriots also set the regular-season mark of 18 straight wins, surpassing the 17 won by the 1933-34 Chicago Bears. 2004 — Arizona’s Emmitt Smith breaks Walter Payton’s NFL record for 100-yard rushing games with his 78th. Neil Rackers of the Cardinals ties an NFL record by kicking three field goals of at least 50 yards. 2004 — Priest Holmes and Derrick Blaylock each score four touchdowns rushing in Kansas City’s 56-10 rout of Atlanta. The eight TDs rushing by Kansas City is an NFL record. 2007 — Boston sets a record for runs and victory margin in a World Series opener as the Red Sox flatten the Rockies 13-1. Boston finishes with 17 hits, becoming the first club to hit eight doubles in a Series game since 1925. Dustin Pedroia also becomes the second player to lead off the Series with a home run. – Compiled by The Associated Press