Zach Thomas has played at a Pro Bowl level for Miami.

When the Bills played Indianapolis in Week 1, Thurman Thomas got knocked out with a kidney injury on the first play of the game. His injury took some of the air out of the Bills, who didn't play with their normal intensity. But in the last two games, and particularly on offense, they have come up with a smash-mouth, physical-type of offense, a bit different from what the Bills have done in the past.

Last year, Bills offensive coordinator Joe Pendry did about as good a job as anyone at designing an offense, spreading the field and attacking people. Against Miami, the Bills clearly have to do that. They can't pound the football on the Dolphins defense because they are too good. The Bills need to find a way to get plays out of the passing game.

In the AFC wild-card game last year, in which Flutie threw for 360 yards, the Bills did a nice job of spreading the field and getting Eric Moulds isolated in man coverage. The Bills will take the same approach, knowing that's where they have the best matchup against the Dolphins.

Dolphins defensive coordinator George Hill has done a fantastic job. Miami plays an aggressive style -- in-your-face, bump-and-run coverage from the corners, their safeties play near the line of scrimmage to get involved against the running game, the linebackers attack the line of scrimmage, and the defensive line penetrates. Teams have to earn every yard they get against the Miami defense.

If inside linebacker Zach Thomas plays as well the next 14 games as he has played the last two, he ought to be a unanimous All-Pro selection. He has played fantastic football, not only in the running game but in the passing game as well.

Here are the keys for both teams Monday night:

Buffalo Bills
1. A productive passing game: Pendry knows the Bills' points will have to come out of the passing game. Flutie has the ability to improvise and manufacture points, and they design plays to get those big plays. Moulds has been the playmaker, and he is the player Flutie will try to throw to in this matchup. Moulds set an NFL-playoff record with 240 receiving yards in last season's playoff loss.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

Super starts: In the 1990s, Miami is 24-5 in its first three games of the season -- a winning percentage of .828. However, the Dolphins often slip after getting out of the gate quickly. They are just 64-53 in the final 13 games of the year. Breaking the Moulds: In the AFC wild-card game in Miami last January, Eric Moulds caught nine passes for an NFL postseason-record 240 yards. That is also the most receiving yards ever against a Dolphins team. Born to run ... and not: Bills quarterback Doug Flutie has rushed for 123 yards in his first three games this season. Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino has 90 yards rushing in 233 career games.

2. Establish the run: The Bills have been able to generate a running game the last two weeks, but they have become a bit one-dimensional on the ground. Thomas gave them an outside burst and they would run things inside and bounce to the outside. With Antowain Smith as the primary back, the Bills love to run between the tackles. Every once in a while, they will pitch outside to keep the defense honest, but that's not Smith's strength.

The Bills' line has become much more aggressive. They are coming off the ball with more intensity. Defensive tackles Tim Bowens and Daryl Gardener will be difficult to combat, but the Bills need the running game to stay out of too many third-and-long situations. When the Bills run, I love watching the matchup between fullback Sam Gash and Thomas. They just smash each other.

3. Improved pass defense: Against the Colts, the Bills played poorly against Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison. Cornerback Ken Irvin really struggled. He will need to pick up his game, matched against Dolphin receivers Tony Martin or O.J. McDuffie.

On the other side, Thomas Smith is an outstanding corner, and the Bills also go with rookie Antoine Winfield. They have some talent in the secondary, but the player the Dolphins will clearly attack is Irvin.

Miami Dolphins
1. Downfield attack: Watching tape of the Dolphins-Cardinals game, I was surprised to see that Miami only threw three passes of 20 yards or more in the game. With a weapon like Tony Martin on the outside, the Dolphins have to challenge the Bills down the field. Against the Broncos, Miami spread the field and attacked down the field successfully. Against Arizona, they just didn't do it. The Dolphins probably felt they could beat the Cardinals with power running and a short passing game, but they almost didn't.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Bills TE Jay Riemersma (No. 85): One of Brian Griese's favorite receivers at Michigan, Riemersma is now becoming one of Doug Flutie's favorite targets as well. Bills NT Ted Washington (No. 92): Buffalo is allowing only 68 yards on the ground per game and even less up the middle. Washington is the big reason why. The Bills offensive linemen: With five 300-pounders working up front, Buffalo leads the AFC in rushing. Dolphins RB Cecil Collins (No. 34): Jimmy Johnson swears Cecil "the Diesel" is the next great thing. Collins will be 100 percent for the first time this season Monday night. Dolphins OT Richmond Webb (No. 78): For 15 years, the Bills' Bruce Smith has chased Dan Marino, but he has caught him just 8+ times. Webb is the main reason why. Dolphins LB Derrick Rodgers (No. 59): Rodgers will shadow Flutie all over the field and try to contain the Bills' elusive quarterback.

2. Control the Bills' defensive line: Defensive end Bruce Smith has always been tough on the Dolphins. Miami must find a way to keep Smith out of the backfield. In addition, nose guard Ted Washington is one of the best run stoppers in football and a load up front. He is probably closer to 400 pounds than 300. The Dolphins will need to double-team Washington and establish the line of scrimmage. If Washington gets any kind of penetration, it will be difficult for the Dolphins to run the football.

Jets center Kevin Mawae, who I thought was the best center in football last year, really struggled with Washington. There are very few teams playing a base 3-4 defense now, so most centers don't play against a nose guard all day. But against Buffalo, Dolphins center Tim Ruddy will have Washington six inches from his helmet the whole time. The Dolphins will use guards Kevin Gogan and Kevin Donnalley to establish a double team on Washington and then scrape off the block to get a linebacker.

3. Avoid mismatches in the secondary: Maybe outside of Tampa Bay, the Dolphins have the best defense in football. When the Bills spread the field in the playoff game last year, they really created some mismatch problems. The Dolphins have three outstanding cornerbacks in Sam Madison, Terrell Buckley and Patrick Surtain. But the Bills spread Miami out so much, it forced the Dolphins to play reserve Jerry Wilson as a fourth corner, and the Bills beat him up pretty good. They got Moulds against Wilson, creating a favorable matchup for the Bills.

The Bills will try to get the same matchup again. Hill must be aware of the Bills trying to create those mismatches. The Dolphins were caught a bit off guard by it last year, but I think they will be ready this time around.

Former NFL quarterback Ron Jaworski appears each week on ESPN's Monday Night Countdown and Edge NFL Matchup. He breaks down the Monday Night Football matchup each week on ESPN.com.