Mediation between the NFL owners and players came to an end this afternoon with U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan after another four hours of talks.

The sides have met for roughly 14 hours over the last two days and are scheduled to reconvene on Tuesday morning. These are the first talks since March 11, and although some have been skeptical these talks that were mandated by Judge Susan Nelson will bring any results, it can’t hurt to have the parties face-to-face in the same room.

Albert Breer of the NFL Network reported that commissioner Roger Goodell and the head of the players trade association DeMaurice Smith were present.

"The magistrate judge is working very hard, and I give him a lot of credit for trying to move the parties toward a solution," NFL counsel Jeff Pash said.

We’ll see where this heads. The belief is both sides are waiting to see what kind of ruling Nelson makes in the next week or two. Of course, an appeal by one side or the other will be expected.

Follow me on Twitter: @BradBiggs

Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune