Playbooks
Quick Reference
In 14 playbooks
Breakdown
PA Spider Mesh runs off play action out of I Form Close 21 personnel, showing a fake handoff before the QB works the pass concept. The diagram shows a mesh combo underneath with two crossers rubbing routes just past the line, a wheel or corner route climbing up the sideline from the backfield action, and a deep vertical shooting up the middle of the field off the mesh. This is a man beater built to create natural picks against man coverage while giving the QB a vertical shot if the safety bites on play action, so the primary read progresses from the deep seam or post shot first, down to the mesh crossers underneath if the top is capped.
Defensive Reads
This concept beats man coverage hardest because the mesh crossers create natural rubs that strip defenders trying to trail in man, so if you see press man or blitz man pre-snap expect the underneath crossers to come open in stride. Zone defenses that carry the mesh with linebackers and pattern match tend to shut this down, especially cover 3 or cover 4 shells that keep a deep defender over the vertical route. Watch for a user controlled safety sitting in the middle of the field, if he reads play action and stays home he can jump the deep shot route and turn it into a pick six. Key the linebacker depth at the snap, if they immediately drop into passing lanes instead of stepping up on the run fake, the play fake did not hold and you should get the ball out on the mesh quickly. Look for a lurking defender spying the QB or sitting in the shallow zone where the mesh crosses, since that is the primary post-snap defender who takes away the easy underneath completion.
Usage Tips
Use pre-snap motion or a hard count to bait linebackers into creeping up for the run fake before the mesh routes develop underneath. Check safety depth before the snap, if you see two deep safeties sitting at 10-12 yards, expect the shell to squat on the mesh so prioritize the vertical route on your first read. Hot route the backside crosser into a quick out or speed out against zone shells to give yourself a boundary conversion option on third and medium. Pair this with PA Boot Flow or PA Deep Read in the same set so the defense has to respect both the play fake and the mesh combo, keeping second level defenders honest. Best called on early downs or third and short to medium when you want play action to hold the linebackers and open the crossing routes.
