FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The NFL’s Deflategate investigation took another twist Thursday when the person responsible for starting it said he didn’t intend to set things in motion.

Colts linebacker D’Qwell Jackson told reporters at Pro Bowl practices in Arizona he didn’t notice the Tom Brady ball he intercepted in the first half of last Sunday’s AFC Championship Game was deflated.

“I wouldn’t know how that could even be an advantage or a disadvantage,” Jackson said. “I definitely wouldn’t be able to tell if one ball had less pressure than another.”

All he wanted was a souvenir, he said, and he gave it to a member of the equipment staff. Newsday reported this week it was a member of the equipment staff who tipped Colts coach Chuck Pagano.

“I don’t know how it got to this point,” he said. “Somehow I’m in the middle of it.”