(AHN Sports)

With the prospect of losing games and the goodwill of American sports fans getting closer to becoming reality, the NFL and its players appear to be finally making some progress in labor talks.

Talks resumed Tuesday on Maryland's Eastern Shore and are scheduled to continue through Wednesday. Attorneys for both sides rejoined the talks Tuesday after they were left out of negotiations the previous two weeks.

Lawyers being brought back into the mix is actually a good thing and there are indications that enough progress has been made that a deal could be reached in a couple to three weeks.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith; team owners, including the Giants' John Mara and the Cowboys' Jerry Jones; and a contingent of players that includeded NFLPA president Kevin Mawae, Jeff Saturday, Mike Vrabel, Tony Richardson and Domonique Foxworth were at the meeting.

The meetings are ongoing to try and end the lockout that began March 12, the day after they dissolved their union and filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NFL.

The regular season is scheduled to begin Sept. 8.

The two sides are trying to hammer out an agreement on how to split more than $9 billion in annual revenue. A salary cap figure, rookie pay scale, blood-testing players for use of human growth hormone and a reduction in offseason workouts are also issues that need to be ddressed.

George Atallah, assistant executive director of external affairs for the NFL Players Association, wasn't ready to predict when the labor impasse will be settles.

"Just like I don't predict about how Federal Judges will rule on cases, I don't predict when a resolution to the lockout will come," he wrote on Twitter.

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