News about football at the moment has lost meaning, but the bombings near the finish line of the Boston Marathon have touched every corner of the sports world.

The Patriots were represented in the race by a group of 24 fund-raising volunteers, including former Patriots linebacker Eric Alexander. There was a story in the Boston Globe about his participation last week, but the paper’s website has crashed, and the link doesn’t work at the moment.

The Patriots Marathon Team had raised more than $239,000 for the Myra Kraft Community MVP Awards.

Our thoughts and prayers are with them, and everyone touched by today’s events.