Owners weigh in on Raiders' potential move to Las Vegas

It's still unclear whether the Raiders are serious in their intent to move the franchise to Las Vegas, or if they're using it as leverage in negotiations with the city of Oakland, hoping to force a long-term agreement.

But with the flirtation continuing between the two parties, the league has to move forward under the assumption that the Raiders see Las Vegas as a viable option.

Any move of a franchise needs the approval of 24 of the 32 NFL owners, so Jenny Vrentas of MMQB.com spoke to several of them to gauge the general feeling toward a potential Raiders relocation to Sin City.

"I would look favorably at it," Houston Texans owner Bob McNair said. "I would like to hear all the arguments, make sure we are not overlooking something. But you have gambling all around you now, lotteries on every street corner. I don't think it is the issue we viewed it to be 20 years ago. We want Oakland to get a good facility, and have stability with their franchise, and if this is an opportunity to do that, then I think it is something we need to seriously consider."

Commissioner Roger Goodell called the speculation of a Raiders move to Las Vegas "very premature" at the league meeting last week. But it appears several owners are at least intrigued by hearing what the city could offer the league.

"I'm open-minded," New York Giants co-owner John Mara said. "I would want to hear a presentation about it and the pros and cons, and obviously there are some concerns, but I am not going to rule it out. The gambling, is the market deep enough to support an NFL team, what kind of stadium would be there, what kind of support are they going to get from the community? Those would be the concerns."

The issues with gambling appears to be the main concern for many who are doubtful that Las Vegas is right for the NFL's next move. However, it does have certain advantages that could balance out those concerns.

"Las Vegas is a very exciting market," New York Jets owner Woody Johnson said. "Nevada is a very good place from a tax standpoint, very low taxes and no income tax. It depends what the deal is with the stadium, and with operating it, and what the league and Mark (Davis) feel are the opportunities there - if he feels he can fill up the stadium and get enough economic traction there with sponsors and all that. ... I don't know if (gambling) is as dominant an issue now as it was 10 years ago."

Raiders owner Mark Davis appears to feel he can gain traction in Las Vegas, as he vowed in late April to give $500 million to help construct a new stadium in the city.

With Robert Kraft of the New England Patriots, one of the league's most influential owners, recently saying he'd back the Raiders' attempt to move to Las Vegas, it appears there is some tentative support from some of the game's biggest decision-makers.

While all said they needed more information to truly form their opinions, having all owners questioned say they're willing to listen is a large victory for the Raiders at this early stage.