This might be seen as blasphemy by some, be decried as flagrantly premature by others or be plainly misinterpreted by most, so I will tread carefully.

What we saw of the Dolphins on Monday night -- if it was real, if we can believe it -- means Miami now has what could be the best all-around, most interesting and hardest-to-defend offense in the franchise's 44 seasons.

Yes, I am aware I speak of a team with a 2-3 record, led by a quarterback with two NFL starts in his career.

Yes, I faintly recall Miami won a couple of Super Bowls back in the distant day.

Yes, I have heard of Dan Marino.

No, I was not heavily medicated while writing this.

(Dear editor: Please do not fix a ``Dolphins offense is greatest ever!'' headline atop this column or I'll be out at 5 a.m. desperately stealing papers off lawns like in Absence of Malice, forgetting about that little thing called the Internet.)

The obvious caveat is that best-ever-anything demands consistent proof over time. What I'm saying, right now, is that the offensive model we saw Monday -- the prototype working to near-perfection -- looks scary-good and, well, flat-out exciting.

Last week's 38-10 rout of Buffalo and then Monday's 31-27 thriller over the New York Jets means the Dolphins have scored more points in consecutive home victories than at any time since midseason 1993. But that's anecdotal. I'm not talking statistics here. I'm talking potential. What could be.

UNLIKE ANY OTHER

Bear in mind, the Dolphins' greatest offenses have been one-dimensional.

Miami won its championships in 1972-73 with a feared ground attack personified by Larry Csonka's brute force and Eugene Morris turning corners as quick as Mercury. Experienced fans will remember how Zonk would run for yards carrying tiny defenders, like a rhino trotting the Serengeti oblivious to the birds on his back. There were no illusions how those Dolphins intended to beat you. Bob Griese needed to throw but 18 passes -- total -- in the two Super Bowl victories.

Miami's other signature offense, of course, was Marino sending missiles to his Marks Brothers. I'll never forget asking Marino, late in his career, to name the greatest running back he had here. He paused. Muttered, ``What the [bleep] you want me to say?'' Hesitated again, at length. Finally, he said Tony Nathan, but the point was Marino never had a feared ball-carrier to provide balance. There was no illusion: Those teams were going to try to beat you through the air.

Seen for the first time Monday night:

The 3-D Dolphins.

The three dimensions: A rushing attack leading the league in ground yardage and time of possession. A Wildcat variation that is more varied than last year and continues to befuddle opponents. And now -- voila! -- a quarterback, Chad Henne, with a strong enough arm to give the Dolphins a vertical presence, even without a top-tier receiver.

Do the Dolphins still lack and need such a wideout? Absolutely. You saw Monday alone what newly acquired Braylon Edwards meant to the Jets. One salivates to imagine an Anquan Boldin or Vincent Jackson in Dolphins colors, fully empowering the offense. But Monday night's game suggests enough else is going to make amends in the meantime.

Look at all of the elements that dovetailed with near-perfection against a Jets defense considered very good.

The offensive line, the best Miami has had in many years, left to right, top to bottom, dominated and shows signs of being a top unit.

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