NFL Commissioner, Union Head Arrive for Talks

WASHINGTON, D.C. – NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and union head
DeMaurice Smith have arrived for the first negotiating session
involving a federal mediator.

Goodell was accompanied Friday by outside counsel Bob Batterman
and lead NFL labor negotiator Jeff Pash. Smith was joined by union
lawyer Richard Berthelsen, Pittsburgh Steelers backup quarterback
Charlie Batch and former player Jim McFarland.

Goodell and Smith declined comment on their way into the
meeting.

It was not known how long the meeting would last.

George H. Cohen, the director of the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service, announced Thursday that both sides had agreed
to have him participate in talks.

The current collective bargaining agreement expires at the end
of the day March 3, and negotiations have been slow.