On Day 122 of the lockout, Smith said "some progress'' was achieved, but added, "We continue to have a lot of work to do.'' He vowed to continue the process as the scheduled start to training camps and the preseason bears down, which brings additional financial pressure to reach an agreement. The first preseason game is Aug. 7 between the Chicago Bears and St.Did I miss any of the notable ones? If not, WHY do so many of us in the valley have season tickets to the Giants, A's, 49ers, Raiders, Warriors and Sharks? The vast majority of these workers are nondegreed, high school / GED holders. Their greatest contribution to society is the ability to throw, catch and/or hit a child's play toy with or without chemical assistance. However, they share another unifying credo with the chastised BART employees they're all collective bargaining unit members.

Still to be determined is whether the same compressed time frame the players have to prepare turns out to be better or