In the NFL's prospects for a potential move into the Las Vegas market, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft saw the hand of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones -- and raised him one on Friday.
In an interview with USA Today Sports, Kraft said he would support the Oakland Raiders' relocation to Las Vegas.
"I think it would be good for the NFL," Kraft told the newspaper. "I know Mark Davis has tried so hard in Oakland. If they won't do it ... I want to support him."
Last week, Jones said he would not be opposed to seeing Las Vegas discussed as the NFL's next destination.
The NFL owners will meet Tuesday in Charlotte, North Carolina, but Las Vegas being a potential landing spot for the Raiders -- or any other team -- reportedly won't be on the official agenda. Last month, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he would not dismiss the Raiders' interest in Las Vegas.
"I came into the league in '94," Kraft told USA Today. "Back then, any exploration of that market was dismissed out of hand. I'm looking where we are today and thinking of the last 10 to 15 years, and the emergence of new media, with Google and Facebook and the like. We're just living in a different world, technology-wise. The risks in Vegas are no longer exclusive to Vegas."
Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman has said she was confident the Raiders "will come if Nevada handles this properly."
On April 28, Davis pledged $500 million toward the construction of a $1.4 billion domed stadium that would seat 65,000 in Las Vegas. The Sands and partnering business Majestic Realty have pledged an additional $150 million, leaving $750 million for taxpayers to see through the stadium project at its early stage.
Backers said on April 28 they would ask for a special session of the Nevada Legislature in August to approve diverting some room-tax funds for the stadium. The legislature is not scheduled to meet again until 2017.
After that, the NFL owners would have to approve a Raiders relocation with affirmative votes by at least 24 of 32 owners.
Information from ESPN's Todd Archer and Andy Katz was used in this report.