Former New England employee Matt Walsh has handed over eight tapes to the National Football League reportedly showing the Patriots stole opponents' offensive as well as defensive signals.
However, Walsh's attorney insists that the tapes don't include a video of the St. Louis Rams' walkthrough practice the day before their upset loss to New England in Super Bowl 36 in 2002.
The Patriots last month denied they ever taped the Rams' walkthrough, and lawyer Michael Levy told the New York Times that Walsh was not the source for a Boston Herald article in February claiming such a tape existed.
"Mr. Walsh has never claimed to have a tape of the walkthrough," Levy told the Times in a telephone interview. "Mr. Walsh has never been the source of any of the media speculation about such a tape. Mr. Walsh was not the source for the February 2 Boston Herald article."
Now an assistant golf pro in Hawaii, Walsh worked for the Patriots from 1996 through the 2002 Super Bowl.
In January, he suggested that he had potentially damaging information about the team's videotaping practices.
His revelations were an embarassment to the Patriots as they pursued a perfect NFL season, a quest that fell short when they lost 17-14 to the New York Giants in Super Bowl 42 in February.
The NFL had already fined Patriots coach Bill Belichick 500,000 dollars and the New England organization 250,000 dollars for violating league rules by taping the New York Jets coaches calling signals during the 2007 season opener.
The Patriots also lost a first-round pick as a result of the "Spygate" incident.
In February, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said six tapes were handed over by the Patriots and had been reviewed and destroyed by the league.
But US Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania fanned the controversy when he questioned Goodell's reasons for destroying the tapes, implying an attempt at a coverup of violation of league rules.
NFL spokesman reg Aiello told ESPN Thursday that the league had not yet assessed the tapes handed over by Walsh.
"Let us look at the tapes and we'll have more to say about that," Aiello said.
