New York ? Making significant progress on one of the major sticking points in NFL labor talks, owners and players neared agreement Thursday on how to rein in the soaring salaries of high first-round draft picks, people familiar with the negotiations said.

Another person with knowledge of the discussions told the Associated Press that Thursday’s 12-hour-plus meeting at a Manhattan law firm was producing results but that other key issues remained to be resolved, such as what free agency will look like moving forward and new offseason workout rules.

The people spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the talks aimed at ending the NFL’s four-month-long lockout are supposed to be confidential.

With time running short to keep the preseason intact, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NFL Players Association head DeMaurice Smith, eight owners and about a half-dozen current or former players were in their second consecutive day of lengthy negotiations. They were expected to meet again today as they attempt to resolve the impasse that created the sport’s first work stoppage since 1987. On rookie salaries, sources said first-round draft picks will sign four-year contracts with a club option for a fifth year. Owners were hoping for five-year contracts, while players wanted highly drafted rookies to be under a team’s control for four years.