Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark (55) sacks Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1), during the first half of last Sunday's loss to the Chiefs. (AP photo)

MIAMI (AP) — The Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots clash today with both teams badly needing wins with the playoffs in mind.

For the Patriots, their hopes barely exist.

Miami (8-5) fell two games behind AFC East leader Buffalo after last week’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, making it unlikely they will end their streak of 12 years without a division title. Six AFC teams have more wins, and the Dolphins are given a 33% chance by FiveThirtyEight to earn a wild-card berth.

They’ll likely need to win two of their final three games to end their four-year playoff drought. Their closing stretch starts today at home against the Patriots, who beat Miami in the season opener.

The Dolphins could be severely short-handed in the rematch. By the end of Sunday’s 33-27 loss to Kansas City, the Dolphins were without their top four pass catchers and two starting linebackers.

“We need the next guy to step up and step in,” coach Brian Flores said this week. “It has been that way for every team the entire year. The teams that are able to adjust the best give themselves an opportunity to continue to play well. And it’s a great opportunity for the guys that get to step in.”

Meanwhile, New England will reportedly be without running back Damien Harris (ankle) and wide receiver Donte Moncrief (knee), both downgraded to out on Saturday. Also, reports say it is unlikely wide receiver Julian Edelman (knee, COVID list) will be activated.

Of course, the Patriots, at 6-7, can’t afford a single loss the rest of the way. After today, they host Buffalo in a Monday Night game on Dec. 28 and then wrap up the season against the hapless Jets, also at home, on Jan. 3.

A lot of combinations have to take place for the Patriots, even if they win out.

“Well, look, all the external things that we can’t control, there’s no point in worrying about those,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “We’re going to focus on our preparations for Miami and try to put together the best game plan and preparation that we can to go down to Miami and win.”

STREAKS, STATS AND NOTES — The Patriots intercepted Ryan Fitzpatrick three times when the teams met in Week 1. Tagovailoa has since replaced Fitzpatrick, and his first career interception came last week on his 153rd pass. … The Dolphins gave up 217 yards rushing in that game, including 75 by QB Cam Newton. … This will be the first time since Bill Belichick’s first season in New England in 2000 that an AFC East foe finishes with more victories than the Patriots. In 2008, both New England and Miami were 11-5, but the Dolphins won the division on a tiebreaker. The Patriots missed a wild-card spot by losing other tiebreakers. … New England has a league-low 50 penalties, and Miami ranks third with 60. … The Patriots are 53-3 since the 2000 regular season when a player rushes for at least 100 yards. … Damien Harris (3) and Sony Michel (1) have combined for four 100-yard rushing games this season, the most by the Patriots since 2007 (5). … QB Cam Newton has 11 touchdowns rushing in 2020, tied for third in the NFL overall. With one more rushing touchdown he will tie Steve Grogan for the team record in a season by a quarterback. … P Jake Bailey leads the NFL with an average of 46.1 net yards per punt. … The Dolphins rank second in points allowed. … Miami is tied for the NFL lead with 25 takeaways, and tied for second in turnover differential at plus-10. … Miami ranks worst in the league with an average of 3.6 yards per rush. … Xavien Howard’s nine interceptions are the most in a season in the NFL since Chicago’s Tim Jennings had nine in 2012. Howard is tied for the league lead with 17 passes defended. … Patriots CB J.C. Jackson is second in interceptions with seven . … Miami’s Jerome Baker had a career-high 2 1/2 sacks last week, including a 30-yarder against Patrick Mahomes, the longest in the NFL in five years. … Three Dolphins tight ends have combined for 11 touchdown receptions. … Miami’s 10-3 record against the spread leads the NFL. … The Dolphins’ streak of at least one takeaway in 19 consecutive games is the longest in the NFL. … Fantasy tip: Dolphins rookie Lynn Bowden Jr. had a season-high seven catches for 82 yards last week and could be busy again with several pass catchers nursing injuries.

(Telegraph staff writer Tom King contributed to this report.)