INDIANAPOLIS —For many players and coaches taking part in this year's Pro Bowl, it was a huge sigh of relief seeing No. 13 and No. 84 in their huddle and on their sideline for once.
T.Y. Hilton and Jack Doyle have been frustrating opposing defenses together now for the better part of two-plus seasons, as the Indianapolis Colts have boasted one of the better wide receiver-tight end duos in the league.
With Hilton making his fourth straight appearance and Doyle being selected to his first-career Pro Bowl, our Colts.com crew down in Orlando, Fla., asked several opposing players, as well as head coach Mike Tomlin, whose Pittsburgh Steelers staff was guiding the AFC squad this year, about what makes this Colts duo so special:
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• Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin:* "It's been great, man. They're both very professional guys. Obviously I'm familiar with them having played those guys the last several years. It's cool to be around them day-to-day. They're diligent workers, man; they show why they deserve to be here. I'm looking forward to working with them (on Sunday).*"
• Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr: "Oh my goodness. Obviously Jack has great hands, and you guys know that — your fans know that — so it's really fun to throw to him. Really reliable and trustworthy guy. And then T.Y.: I threw him a bomb two years ago in Hawaii, and they called our touchdown back. But it's fun to throw to him. He's fast; you can't overthrow that guy. He's a great talent, and they're both really good dudes to be around."
• Tennessee Titans tight end Delanie Walker: "Very quiet guy. Very, very quiet. But (Doyle) knows the game, plays it well, and like they say, he's reliable. He's the guy that if you throw the ball in the air, he's going to go get it. And I'm glad he's one of my teammates on the Pro Bowl, because when I get tired I'm going to need him to go out and make a play for me. But again, he's just reliable and he knows what he's doing when he's out there."
• Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown: "Just seeing (Hilton) work since he was a kid, to see the growth, the development, see him at the highest level still be able to keep that focus, and always getting better constantly … it's exciting to be around and to talk about it and share it. And I'm just extremely proud of him."
• Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas: "Just for T.Y., I remember playing him in the season: he does a great job of getting to his spots, and I call it 'shooting your shots.' I feel like he's very quarterback friendly, because the mental side that he brings to the game. So he's going to challenge us."
• Minnesota Vikings cornerback Xavier Rhodes: "Obviously (Hilton's) going to go deep. He's a guy that's going to go deep. He's pretty fast when the ball's up in the air. You can't overthrow him, so that's the type of guy you've got to stay on top (of), be aggressive at the line of scrimmage, because once he gets past you, it's over. So that's the type of guy you've just got to be careful with."
• Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey: "I would much rather be sharing the field with T.Y. instead of having to gameplan for him all week, because that's tough for me every time we play them. So I'm happy to play with them on the team, and hope they can make some of them plays that they made against us on Sunday."
• Detroit Lions cornerback Darius Slay: "Very competitive guy, man. Deep threat. Smooth — I call (Hilton) the 'smooth criminal,' man, because he just stays at one pace and makes all the tough catches and he just competes, man. He's one of the most underrated (receivers) I went against. Everybody got all the hype around Juliio (Jones), Odell (Beckham Jr.), but T.Y. is a guy people sleep on. The league doesn't sleep on him, but just people do."
Highlights from the 2018 NFL Pro Bowl.