How Patriots' Julian Edelman helped stop a potential school shooting

"I can't help but notice in the comments section there is a kid saying he's going to shoot up a school, can everybody alert the authorities please????" an unidentified Instagram user posted under a photo of Edelman in Austin.

In addition to posting the message under his photo, the Instagram user sent him a separate direct message.

"Dude, there is a kid in your comment section says he s going to shoot up a school, i think you should alert the authority," the message said.

What followed was a flurry of actions that authorities said may have helped stop a potential school shooting.

Edelman told The New York Times that when he saw the message, his first thought was the high school massacre in Parkland, Florida.

"With the emotions of what happened, and I have a kid now, I said, holy Toledo, what is going on?" he told the paper.

He alerted Shannen Moen, his Boston-based assistant, and asked her to comb through the hundreds of comments under his latest post at the time -- a picture of him with fellow wide receiver Danny Amendola.

Moen found the alarming comment. "I'm going to shoot my school up watch the news," a user named its_ya_boiii_aidan wrote, according to a screen grab posted by The Times.

Boston Police Commissioner William B. Evans said Moen alerted them and his detectives traced the commenter's IP address to Port Huron, Michigan.

Boston authorities notified their Michigan counterparts, who went to the home where the message originated. There, they found a 14-year-old boy who confessed to posting the threat, Port Huron Police Capt. Joseph Platzer told CNN affiliate WBZ.

At the home, police found two rifles that belonged to the boy's mother, according the affiliate.

The teen was detained on a charge of making a false report of a threat of terrorism, Platzer said.

Port Huron is in Macomb County, which has seen a spike of threats against schools since the Parkland shooting, according to Prosecuting Attorney Eric Smith.

A normal school year would see 17 charges of false threats or threats of terrorism, he said. This year, the number is 51. He said 40 people were charged as juveniles and 11 as adults in those incidents.

In the Parkland shooting, gunman Nikolas Cruz posted several threats on social media, including Instagram, leading to criticism against authorities for their failure to act.

Edelman thanked the unidentified person who alerted him to the threat.

"This individual's thoughtfulness and awareness may have helped avert another tragedy," his representatives said in a statement. "Julian is very grateful for the quick action of law enforcement authorities in Massachusetts and Michigan, and he thanks all law enforcement for their efforts in helping all of us become more aware and vigilant."