Two NFL players -- Corey Smith of the Detroit Lions, land Marquis Cooper of the Oakland Raiders -- were among a group of four boaters who went missing Sunday (March 1) off the Gulf Coast of Florida.

According to reports, both players were among a group of friends who left in Cooper's 21-foot boat early Saturday morning (February 28) for a day of fishing off the coast of Clearwater, Florida. But, they never returned, nor did officials receive a distress signal from the missing boat.

The Coast Guard has been searching to no avail as of press time. They were alerts by family members of the situation around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, which resulted in a massive search by sea and air -- including airplanes, helicopters and rescue boats.

However, a mixture of high winds and rough waters hampered the search efforts, which covered a 750-square-mile area west of Clearwater Pass.

"We had a 47-foot vessel searching earlier today, and we had to pull it in because it was too rough," Coast Guard petty officer Sondra-Kay Kneen said, according to the LA Times.

The paper reports that the National Weather Service in Tampa said seas were about two to four feet Saturday morning and increased to three to five feet in the afternoon. By night time, a small-craft advisory was issued, and Sunday seas reached eight to 12 feet. Winds were gusting up to 30 knots.

Both teams of the players issued statements saying they would keep close contact with the Coast Guard, and said their thoughts and prayers were with their players.

Smith has played seven NFL seasons, with the last three being with the Detroit Lions. He spent his first 2 1/2 seasons with Tampa Bay -- where he and Cooper were teammates -- then played for San Francisco.