Eagles Receiver Caught Reading On Sidelines: "I Like To Read"

The Philadelphia Eagles defeatd the Green Bay Packers in the wildcard round without much receiving help from the top pass-catcher.

Jan 12, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) walks to the field before the NFC wild card game against the Green Bay Packers at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

PHILADELPHIA – A.J. Brown was channeling his Inner Excellence. Literally. TV cameras caught the Eagles receiver catching up on his reading while sitting on the bench as a playoff game swirled around him. Specifically, he was reading a book by Jim Murphy titled, Inner Excellence: Train Your Mind For Extraordinary Performance and the Best Possible Life.

Turns out, Brown reads that book more often than we know. He said it wasn’t the first time that he brought it out.

“It’s got a lot of points in there,” said Brown. “It’s a mental game, a lot of mental parts about it, and what’s for me, the game is mental. I physically believe I can do anything and everything. But I gotta make sure my mental’s good. It’s something like how I refresh every drive regardless of if I score a touchdown or drop a pass. I always go back to that book every drive and refocus.”

There could be a run on that book for Eagles fans who may be willing to put away their dog masks from the 2017 run to a Super Bowl for … a book? Maybe a few copies will turn up at Lincoln Financial Field when the Eagles play in the Divisional Round of the playoffs on Sunday (3 p.m.) after dispatching the Green Bay Packers 22-10, in the wildcard game.

“I always revert back to the beginning of the book,” he said. “It states that if you can have a clear mind … and remember that nothing else matters. A clear mind and a clear conscience. Nothing else matters negative or positive. Be willing to take risks. It also says if you’re humble, you can’t be embarrassed.”

Brown was targeted three times and made only one catch for 10 yards. He helped the team win in other ways, such as the block he made on Green Bay safety Evan Williams to help spring Dallas Godert on a 24-yard catch-and-run touchdown late in the third quarter of a game that was 10-3 at the time. Perhaps more importantly, he said his ailing knee was OK coming out of the game.

Still, he was asked by reporters after the win if his book reading was a sign of his frustration.

“I figure that’s what y’all probably thought,” he said. “I wasn’t frustrated. Why you always think I’d be frustrated? I like to read.”

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