NFL commissioner Roger Goodell could suspend New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick for a year if any more instances of illegal videotaping are found, ESPN reported Sunday.

When Goodell fined Belichick $500,000 for the original spying scandal, the commissioner told Belichick that any other violations would result in a year-long suspension, ESPN reported.

So in light of the Boston Herald report that a member of the New England Patriots’ video staff taped the St. Louis Rams’ last walkthrough before the 2002 Super Bowl, Belichick could be in trouble.

The NFL said Saturday it was satisfied this was not another Spygate, although Goodell said Sunday on ESPN that he would reopen the investigation if other evidence came to light.

“We were aware of the rumor months ago and looked into it. There was no evidence of it on the tapes or in the notes produced by the Patriots, and the Patriots told us it was not true,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told The Associated Press.

Citing an unidentified source, the Boston Herald reported that a Patriots employee recorded the Rams’ walkthrough at the Superdome in the New Orleans a day before the Super Bowl. New England beat the heavily favored Rams 20-17 its first NFL title.

The Herald reported that a source close to the Patriots in the 2001 season said the team held a walkthrough at the Superdome in New Orleans before the game on Feb. 3, 2002. After the Patriots took a team picture, a member of their video department stayed inside the stadium and taped the Rams’ session.

It was not known whether the cameraman was told by the Patriots to film the practice or what he did with the tape, the Herald said. The Rams were two-touchdown favorites, but lost on Adam Vinatieri’s last-second field goal.

“The suggestion that the New England Patriots recorded the St. Louis Rams’ walkthrough on the day before Super Bowl XXXVI is absolutely false. Any suggestion to the contrary is untrue,” Patriots spokesman Stacey James told the AP.

Rams spokesman Rick Smith, reading a statement from team president John Shaw, said, “At this point, we have no comment.”

The unbeaten Patriots will try to win their fourth Super Bowl in seven seasons Sunday when they play the New York Giants.

Early this season, Goodell fined Belichick $500,000 and docked the team $250,000 and a first-round draft pick after the Spygate scandal. The Patriots were accused of videotaping New York Jets defensive coaches as they signaled to players.

New England did not have a walkthrough Saturday. The Giants held one at the Arizona Cardinals’ practice facility.

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A walkthrough is done without pads or helmets, giving teams a chance to practice their formations.

Goodell spent much of his state of the game address Friday talking about that episode. He said he did not think the Patriots used such tapes to win previous titles.

“There was no indication that it benefited them in any of the Super Bowl victories,” he said.

Goodell also defended his decision to destroy notes and videotapes linked to the Spygate, saying “there was no purpose for them.”

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., who sent Goodell a letter asking for explanation, said Goodell’s response “didn’t make any sense at all.”