Last week, it appeared that the NFL and NFL Players Association wouldn’t resume bargaining talks on a new labor deal until later in October. But they did. In secret.

Well, not really secret, since the media outlet owned and operated by the NFL has disclosed the not-so-secret secret meeting in a Sunday Splash! report.

Commissioner Roger Goodell, Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, and Giants co-owner John Mara met with NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith and union president Eric Winston in Jacksonville, timing the session with Smith’s annual meeting with Jaguars players.

Via the item posted at NFL.com, “both sides modified their positions on the central economic issue, though there was still no major breakthrough amidst hopes of completing a new collective bargaining agreement during the league’s 100th season.”

The league wants to get this done before the end of the season, so that it can pivot to negotiating new TV deals before the 2020 presidential campain takes a chunk out of recent ratings gains. And the item posted at NFL.com drops a hint regarding one of the very real dynamics at play: Unless someone offers Winston a roster spot this year with an NFL team (and he takes it), Winston won’t be able to run for re-election. Per multiple sources, both the league and the union are concerned that a new union president, coupled with potential changes to the NFLPA executive committee, could make it harder to get a deal done.

While both sides may not be committed to getting a deal done in the next few weeks, both sides seem to be committed to keeping the efforts to getting a deal done quiet. And the NFL seems to be committed to providing, each and every Sunday morning, a “nothing to see here” update in order to keep fans and media from thinking that the whole thing could blow up. Even though it definitely could — especially if a deal isn’t done by March and union leadership dramatically changes.