Heading into Week 17, both the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots are vulnerable for one reason or another.

Miami heads to New England having lost five of their seven road games this year -- all but one of their six losses this season have been away from Pro Player Stadium. And regardless of whether they acknowledge, or read into it as a problem, there's a looming psychological element to overcome. The fact of the matter is, Miami has not played well away from home.

Now, they're going into the cold Gillette Stadium, where no one thinks they can win because the Dolphins are considered a warm-weather team. But, the Dolphins know there's bright side, because they've never had Ricky Williams before. Now, with a more complete offense, they believe, in their hearts, that they can go in and win this game.

On the other hand, coming off of a big loss to the Jets last week, New England's confidence is wavering. I'm a huge Tom Brady fan but the Patriots appear to be vulnerable. The Pats know that the playoffs are at stake. They also know that if they beat Miami, they can clinch the AFC East.

And they probably believe that if they can get in, they can win the whole dang thing -- so this is a pivotal matchup for New England -- they've got to get their game face on.

Five Keys for New England
1. Get Brady some help: As we've seen in the past few games, if the Patriots don't give Brady some support, it becomes a passing fancy -- which, if he's having a great day, is fine. Brady is certainly capable of carrying this team when he's on his game. But if he's struggling a bit, and not having a great game -- the Patriots lose. That's too much responsibility for one guy.

2. Protect Brady: After getting shoved around by the Jets last week, the offensive line (particularly the tackles) need to protect Brady better. The Pats are a passing team, so they're going to get pressured all the time and they're going to give up some sacks. But they can't get beat up and not allow Brady some time to sit back in the pocket -- that's inexcusable. If the Patriots are committed to the pass, then they better protect it.

3. Take out Ricky Williams: Easier said than done. Especially because the Patriots haven't had much success stopping dominant runners all season. I'm not sure how to do it, but if the Pats can take out Williams and make Miami one dimensional, than they can win this game.

4. Neutralize Taylor: In No. 2, I talked about protection. But more specifically, the Patriots have got to find a way to contain Miami defensive end Jason Taylor. With the trouble they've had, and as much as they pass, Taylor, the league's leading sacker (18.5), can very easily come in and take over this game. So whether they call in help from a back or a tight end, they've got to neutralize Taylor -- if he hits Brady a couple times and forces a few fumbles, New England will not win.

5. Win the kicking game: In brutal, cold weather this matchup could very likely come down to the kicking game. It will most likely be a 17-14, 20-17-type game. The more efficient kicker, Adam Vinatieri or Olindo Mare, will win.

Five keys for Miami
1. Rely on Williams In last week's loss to the Vikings, Miami didn't have many plays from scrimmage, but Williams only ran the ball 15 times -- that's not enough. Miami has been living by Williams all year long, they've got to keep it going. If the Dolphins lose, they should go down utilizing their best player. And if they win, it should be because of their best player. The NFL's leading rusher needs to touch the ball at least 25 times. If he can do that, Miami will control the tempo of the game.

2. Mistake-free Fiedler In 10 games, Fiedler has thrown nine interceptions (and of course, there was that poor Week 4 performance when he threw four INTs). On the road, playing against an inconsistent New England defense, Fiedler must protect the football. Especially with bad weather; Fiedler has got to be extra protective.

3. Take some shots While Fielder must protect the ball, he's also got to take some shots. He's got to go out there and let it all hang out. Fiedler can't play scared, but he also can't play stupid -- if a guy is covered, he needs to deal with it. But he's got to play loose and take advantage of his weapons. We saw Chris Chambers catch seven balls for 138 yards against the Raiders two weeks ago. Chambers is a good player who can take over a game, Fiedler's got to use him.

4. Score in the red zone I don't care if it's field goals or touchdowns, if Miami gets into the red zone, they must post points. This will most likely be a mid-to-low scoring game, so Miami can't get inside the red zone and fumble the ball (like we saw Tampa Bay do on Monday night). They simply can't do that. I don't care if they kick five field goals, if they get into the red zone, they must come away with points.

5. Make the Pats one dimensional Miami likes to play a lot of man-to-man coverage, leaving opportunities for Brady to make some big throws. So, if the Dolphins can pressure Brady and eliminate the pass, they'll force New England to run and try and beat them on the ground. The Dolphins mentality is that if the Pats can beat them on the ground, than the Patriots deserve to win. If they can force New England into third-and-seven situations and then allow the Pats to beat them by running the ball, then maybe they (the Dolphins) don't deserve to be in the playoffs after all.

Sean Salisbury covers the NFL for ESPN.