Tom E. Curran • E-mail

It appears we've reached the end of Spygate's "active" phase.

The vetting of Matt Walsh on Tuesday and the public screening of his NFL sideline tape collection gave the league its, "See? Nothing here. Case closed," moment.

Yeah, well, if only it were so easy. Spygate isn't gone and it won't be forgotten.

Some people -- fans, drive-by commentators and media types -- are never going to accept that the New England Patriots weren't engaged in something more diabolical than what the tapes showed.

"All this -- eight months of hand-wringing, finger-pointing and accusations -- for ... for that??!?!?"

There had to be something more. And to these people who view Tuesday's exercise through the prism of skepticism, it's easy. Matt Walsh lied. The Patriots got to him. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell paid him off. Whatever it was, there was some kind of Roswell, New Mexico, Area 51 wool-pulling going on by The Man down on Park Avenue. 

Spygate Skeptics won't be satisfied the way Oliver Stone wasn't satisfied with The Warren Commission’s Report (quarterbacked, ironically by a young Arlen Specter) on the JFK assassination. Yet instead of grassy knolls and magic-bullet theories, people will return to "Rams walkthrough" and "Louisiana Superdome" for decades because the Patriots of the '00s are a historic team and this is -- sadly for them -- now part of their history.

The people who just ain't buyin' this whole story aren't necessarily cynics incapable of believing anything they can't lay their hands on. Plenty of them probably back Obama's nebulous promises of "hope" and "change."

And those who swallow the testimony of Walsh and the Patriots aren't saps and dupes who still leave cookies out for Santa.

But there are two camps and -- no matter what Goodell, Specter or Matt Walsh say -- two camps will remain.

Patriots' Spygate scandal Ex-Pats assistant doesn't recall talking to Walsh Walsh says he was told how to evade rules Boston newspaper says Spygate story was false Specter calls Goodell's explanation 'ridiculous'   Goodell says no more punishment for Patriots Curran: Case closed on Spygate? Nah Opinion: An everlasting stain on Patriots Complete NFL coverage

So what did the eight tapes Walsh brought to New York show?

Questionable cinematography of opposing coaches making hand gestures. Bird's eye views of plays. Glimpses of the scoreboard. Gratuitous T and A shots of the San Diego Chargers cheerleaders, circa 2002. Now we know why the NFL destroyed the first batch of tapes. They were terminally boring.

Nothing on the tapes was new evidence against the Patriots. And the act the tapes were supposed to help the Patriots perform -- decoding opponents' defensive signals -- is perfectly legal, it should be noted. Just not with a video camera. Nothing they taped couldn't have been done by hand just as effectively by any employee with a pair of binoculars and a pencil. Sad but true.

Yet on the NFL Network, desk jockey Rich Eisen was fairly apoplectic while the a tape of the Steelers sideline during the 2001 AFC Championship rolled, commenting to reporter Adam Schefter, "Taping during an AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME which is OUTRAGEOUS ADAM! At first blush it is outrageous that this would go down in one of the more important games of an NFL season. But it is nothing new."

MORE FROM NFL

NFL Section Front

Saints finish with flourish, improve to 8-0 Colts come up big late vs. Texans, stay perfect Rosenthal: NFL’s contenders, pretenders separated Sunday   Chargers rally, hand Giants 4th straight loss   Winless no more: Buccaneers stun Packers Pats’ Brady-Moss connection burns Dolphins ‘Much more mature’ Bengals make statement Warner throws 5 TDs as Cardinals rip Bears Sideline scuffle mars Falcons’ win over ’Skins   Week 9 action NFL Section Front   Add NFL headlines to your news reader: