Apparently Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward is ready for the NFL lockout to end in the worst way.

His motivation isn’t money. It’s that the Dancing With the Stars king is anxious to begin the journey back to the Super Bowl and possibly win the third championship of his career.

So Ward took his desire for the lockout to end to his Facebook page Sunday night.

"I'm hoping this lockout ends shortly,” wrote Ward, whose team lost to Green Bay in this past season’s Super Bowl. “My teammates and I are ready for some football. I am hoping that over the 4th of July weekend, the family of the owners and all of the fans will plea to end this lockout. We are ready to make another run at another championship and hope we can have a full season to do just that. So it's time to take off my dancing shoes and put on my football cleats. I want that THIRD RING!"

It does appear that negotiations to end the 100-day old work stoppage are heating up, but it’s still unclear how close the owners and players are to reaching a deal. Some players like Seattle Seahawks offensive line Chester Pitts, who is his team’s player representative, say a deal isn’t nearly as close to being reached as has been reported.

But several media outlets are reporting that the two sides are continuing to meet. They are reportedly set for another round of secret negotiations this week.

Contact Terrance Harris at terrancefharris@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @Terranceharris

(Photo: Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)