Eagles' Brown addresses reading book on sidelines: 'Works for me'

A.J. Brown went viral Sunday after the TV broadcast showed the Eagles wide receiver reading a book on the sideline during Philadelphia's 22-10 wild-card victory over the Green Bay Packers.

Brown - who finished the game with just one catch for 10 yards - explained the situation postgame, saying he brings the same inspirational book to every game.

"It gives me a sense of peace," Brown said about reading during games, according to NFL Network's Stacey Dales. "That's the book that I bring in every single game. My teammates call it the recipe. That's the first time I heard y'all got me on camera, but it's not the first game. It's got a lot of points in there, it's a lot of mental game, a lot of mental parts about it. Works for me."

He added: "It's something like how I refresh every drive."

It didn't take long for NFL fans to identify Brown's motivational book, which is called "Inner Excellence" by Jim Murphy.

"I was not frustrated at all (while reading the book)," Brown explained, according to Zach Gelb of The Zach Gelb Show. "I figured that's what y'all probably thought. I wasn't frustrated. Why do you always think I'm frustrated?"

Brown led the Eagles with 1,079 receiving yards across 13 games in 2024, but he apparently wasn't always happy with the team's passing attack. In December, Brown seemingly took a shot at Philly's passing game led by Jalen Hurts, and team veteran defender Brandon Graham said Dec. 9 that the relationship between the wideout and quarterback had changed. Brown and Hurts have addressed the situation multiple times, saying they have no issues.

Brown scored a touchdown in each of his last three regular-season games before the Eagles decided to rest most of their starters in Week 18.

The star wideout - who earned his third consecutive second-team All-Pro berth this year - battled a knee injury this week but was able to play in Sunday's win.

"Felt really good. Moved around really good. It didn't show it on the stats, but I did a lot today," Brown said of his wild-card performance.

The Eagles' defense put on a show against the Packers and intercepted quarterback Jordan Love three times. Philly's offense did just enough to advance to the divisional round with Hurts completing 13-of-21 attempts for 131 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 36 yards.