‘Lord, please be with Will Smith’s family’

Former Saints running back Pierre Thomas (center) watches as New Orleans police investigate the shooting of Will Smith and his wife. (Michael DeMocker/NOLA.com The Times-Picayune via AP)

Former New Orleans Saints teammates and other NFL players were stunned by the gut-punch news that former defensive end Will Smith had been shot to death Saturday night after a fender-bender in the city.

Players asked for prayers for Smith’s wife, Racquel, who was shot in the leg, and the three children Smith leaves behind in a series of social media entries that showed the raw reaction to the news of the double shooting.

Hurt right now. Lord please be with Will Smith's family.

— Darren Sproles (@DarrenSproles) April 10, 2016

Mourning the loss of a great friend and teammate, Will Smith. Such a senseless tragedy. Please pray for Racquel and their children.

— Drew Brees (@drewbrees) April 10, 2016

Devastated. Lord please be with the Smith family at this tragic time. Nonsense man...

— Mark Ingram II (@markingramII) April 10, 2016

Heavy Hearts w the senseless passing of our Team Capt. Will Smith. Pray for his wife's recovery and their children. pic.twitter.com/VomR0Sut6M

— Sean Payton (@SeanPayton) April 10, 2016

RIP WILL SMITH.. #NewOrleans

— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) April 10, 2016

Sick to my stomach! This one hurts

— Reggie Bush (@ReggieBush) April 10, 2016

WOWWW!! Prayers to Will Smith family!! Take nothing for granted. You never know folks. God bless his family man. Wow this sucks!!

— Gerald McCoy (@Geraldini93) April 10, 2016

Pray for my friend's family, pray for his teammates. So senseless.
Rest in peace Will

— deuce mcallister (@dmcallister26) April 10, 2016

RIP brother #WillSmith pic.twitter.com/Gmf3YMDCaR

— Jonathan Casillas (@jcasillas52) April 10, 2016

Shocked, crushed, & broken over this. Please pray for the family of my friend & brother Will Smith. Tragic beyond words. Love you, Will.

— Scott Fujita (@sfujita55) April 10, 2016

I woke up this morning to hear the terrible news about my friend, my teammate, my brother, Will Smith. I am devastated and heartbroken.

— Donté Stallworth (@DonteStallworth) April 10, 2016

Steve Gleason, the former Saints player who is battling Lou Gehrig’s disease, wrote:

Senseless and tragic don't come close to capturing my feelings on the @iWillSmith murder. Love you Will.
-SG pic.twitter.com/pyVqPd1PTe

— Steve Gleason - "Live Impossible" (@SteveGleason) April 10, 2016

Smith played at Ohio State and his tragic passing was noted by the Buckeyes’ coach as well as LeBron James.

Heart breaking news at the loss of buckeye great, Will Smith. Buckeye Nation extends our prayers to his family during this difficult time.

— Urban Meyer (@CoachUrbanMeyer) April 10, 2016

Prayers and condolence sent out to Will Smith #RIP and his beautiful family! So sad man. Good dude he was man!

— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 10, 2016

A noted New Orleans native noted Smith’s death as well.

praying for the wife and family of @Saints will smith... RIP

— Harry Connick Jr (@HarryConnickJR) April 10, 2016

More on Will Smith:

Police look for motive beyond road rage

Tyrann Mathieu says he knows Will Smith’s alleged shooter