"Reggie Wayne considered the question, paused, smiled.

What, the Indianapolis Colts' Pro Bowl wide receiver was asked, did you learn from your first meeting with Darrelle Revis, the New York Jets' lockdown cornerback?

"It was an adventure on Revis Island, I guess," Wayne said. "It was fun.

"One thing about Revis is he's going to challenge you. He's going to make you play your best. That's all you can ask for. I accept that challenge."

The Colts and Jets will spend three hours at Lucas Oil Stadium today determining the AFC's representative for Super Bowl XLIV.

The game within the game -- Wayne vs. Revis; No. 87 vs. No. 24 -- could go a long way toward determining which team advances.

Wayne is quarterback Peyton Manning's go-to receiver, and has been even before Marvin Harrison departed last February. He is a 2001 first-round draft pick, a four-time Pro Bowl selection, a nine-year veteran with suction cups at the ends of his fingers.

Revis is coach Rex Ryan's silencer. He's a 2007 first-round draft pick, a two-time Pro Bowler and runner-up to Green Bay's Charles Woodson in the voting for 2009 NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

Strength on strength.

Wayne, Ryan said, is "about as good as it gets. Obviously, Reggie Wayne is an unbelievable football player, but he's going up against an unbelievable player in Darrelle Revis.

"There are maybe two or three receivers in his class, in Reggie Wayne's class, but there is only one Darrelle Revis."

When the Colts and Jets last shared the same field Dec. 27 in Lucas Oil Stadium, Wayne and Revis shared the same space.

Wayne was on the field for 39 plays before departing, along with Manning and several other front-line players after the Colts took a 15-10 lead at the 10:13 mark of the third quarter. Each time Wayne danced out to his position, which was almost exclusively split wide left, Revis followed."