Stephen A. Smith explains that Pittsburgh has no excuse not to beat New England at home and go into the playoffs riding high. (0:57)

PITTSBURGH -- The Dolphins gave the Steelers somewhat of a blueprint in their Monday Night Football win over the Patriots, who failed to convert a single third down on 11 tries.

While studying for Sunday's clash with the Patriots at Heinz Field, Steelers cornerback Artie Burns was impressed with the physicality of Miami's pass coverage, which forced Tom Brady into two interceptions in a 27-20 win.

"They definitely got hands on him," Burns said. "If you watch the corners, the linebacker, they had hands on them down the line, down the field on the route, that kept the disruption on the timing of the route between Brady and the receiver. That’s something we looked at on tape and are gonna take it into our game.”

The Dolphins ran mostly man coverage, which some have said is the key to unlocking a Brady-led offense. Brady has carved up the Steelers' zone coverages in the past, but Pittsburgh players say the team is more equipped to switch things up, even if rookie Cam Sutton might be making his first NFL start in place of Joe Haden.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick said the Steelers play a lot of "match zone," which is a form of man coverage -- starting in zone but breaking into coverage once the receiver breaks.

But Burns said the Steelers have prepped man coverages over months of practices for moments like this.

"To get through this championship round, we have to play physical ball, man to man," Burns said. "It’s best to play man against Tom Brady. That’s what we’ve seen on film."

The Steelers won't reveal their full plans, but expect some dime packages to try to disrupt Brady's passing.

Defensive tackle Tyson Alualu saw something else from Miami's film, courtesy of Ndamukong Suh & Co.

"They just dominated up front," Alualu said.

The Steelers, similarly, like to get pressure with their defensive line, something Miami did along with the occasional timely blitz.