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Fantasy football Week 18: Matchups to exploit, avoid at each position

A matchup with the Bills might not be the best for Tua Tagovailoa's fantasy prospects. Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo

Making tough lineup decisions each week can be the most challenging part of the fantasy football process.

The Matchups Map provides a schedule-independent method to evaluate positional matchups each week, rating all 32 opposing defenses in terms of how favorable the matchup is for opposing players at all four skill positions (quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end). Instead of relying on seasonal totals, we calibrate points-allowed data to show how each defense fared relative to the difficulty of the schedule it has faced over the most recent five weeks. This provides a fairer approach to judging the quality of individual matchups.

Adj. FPA, or adjusted fantasy points allowed, reflects how many points the defense allows compared with players' weekly averages. A positive number means the matchup is favorable; a negative number means it is unfavorable. Additionally, remember teams often use multiple running backs and wide receivers in a game, and these plus/minus averages cover all of a team's personnel at that position.

All references to fantasy points are for PPR scoring unless otherwise noted.

Quarterbacks