Spygate Meetings Yield No New Evidence

NEW YORK | A murmur rippled across the room as the NFL revealed the tapes provided by former Patriots video assistant Matt Walsh.

The cause was not some new revelation of wrongdoing by New England, which was caught last September recording opposing coaches' signals in violation of league rules.

No, the most scandalous tidbit that emerged Tuesday after Walsh spent more than six hours meeting separately with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Sen. Arlen Specter? A snippet of tape that showed not football but close-ups of San Diego Chargers cheerleaders performing during a 2002 game.

Otherwise, little fresh information surfaced. Asked if he considered the Spygate investigation closed, Goodell said, "As I stand before you today, and having met with Matt Walsh and more than 50 other people, I don't know where else I would turn."

No new fireworks came from Specter, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, who has criticized the league's handling of the case.

When his afternoon meeting with Walsh in Washington ran long, he postponed his news conference until today.

Walsh provided some closure - and a new nugget - about one of the most serious allegations made against New England. He had no knowledge of anybody with the Patriots taping the Rams' final walkthrough leading up to the 2002 Super Bowl, Goodell said.

Also

RAIDERS: Signed ex-Buc defensive end Greg Spires to a one-year deal.

SEAHAWKS: Pro Bowl linebacker Lofa Tatupu was arrested early Saturday morning for investigation of drunken driving.