Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni scolded those who may question A.J. Brown’s behavior after the All-Pro wide receiver was seen reading a self-help book during the team’s playoff victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
Sirianni defended Brown during an appearance Tuesday on a 94.1 WIP radio show in Philadelphia.
“Some guys pray in between, some guys mediate in between. A.J. reads in between. Whatever these guys need to do to put their mind in a place where they can play with great detail and great effort, I fully encourage them to do that,” Sirianni said.
The coach noted that Brown’s teammates also defended him, instead of reading a book by its cover, in a way, when the video clip went viral. Critics thought Brown was frustrated during the game, when he caught just one pass for 10 yards on three targets in the 22-10 home victory in the NFC wild-card round.
“We don’t do any research, and we jump to a conclusion of, âOh he must be disgruntled.’ That to me is lazy,” Sirianni said. “Everyone needs to figure out why he’s doing it before they jump to judgment on the man. Because the man, A.J. Brown is a great, great, great person. The man A.J. Brown is the best receiver — and I’ll say it without hesitation — the best receiver that this city has ever seen … It’s hard for me to watch when people are getting on him without doing the proper research of who the man is and what he’s doing in the first place.”
All of the attention has benefitted the book, “Inner Excellence: Train Your Mind for Extraordinary Performance and the Best Possible Life.” Written by Jim Murphy, a former minor league baseball player, the book rose from 523,497th to the top of Amazon’s bestsellers list.
Brown, 27, said he brings the book to every game because reading passages helps him clear his mind.
“It gives me a sense of peace,” Brown said Sunday. “My teammates call it a recipe. That’s the first time I’ve heard y’all got me on camera. That’s not the first game. It’s got a lot of points in there.”
Last month, there appeared to be drama in the relationship between Brown and quarterback Jalen Hurts over how much the receiver was being involved in the offense. That led to speculation that Brown was signaling his displeasure with Sunday’s output.
“I wasn’t frustrated at all. I figured that’s what y’all probably thought,” Brown said. “Why do you always think I be frustrated? Dang. I like to read.”
Brown made 67 receptions for 1,079 yards and seven touchdowns in starting 13 regular-season games. He has 446 career receptions for 7,026 yards and 49 TDs in 90 regular-season games (82 starts) with the Tennessee Titans (2019-21) and Eagles.
The Titans selected him in the second round (51st overall) of the 2019 NFL Draft out of Ole Miss. He was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2020, 2022 and 2023.
The Eagles host the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday in the NFC divisional round.
