AJ Brown was spotted reading a self-help book during an NFL playoff game. It is now the best selling book on Amazon

CNN
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Over the years, cameras have caught NFL players doing some memorable non-football things on the sidelines during games. Tom Brady once threw an electronic tablet in frustration. Three members of the Seattle Seahawks were fined for eat hot dogs during a 1995 preseason game.

On Sunday night in Philadelphia, as the Eagles hosted a playoff game against the Green Bay Packers, wide receiver AJ Brown did something that was arguably even more exciting.

He sat down and opened a book.

As the Eagles rolled to their 22-10 victory, cameras showed Brown on a bench on the sidelines studying a worn paperback. One of the Fox Sports broadcast announcers chuckled. “I haven’t seen too many people reading books (during a game),” he said.

The book is called “Inner Excellence: Train Your Mind for Extraordinary Performance and the Best Life Possible.” It was written by Jim Murphy, a former professional baseball player and self-described “performance coach” who helps athletes build mental toughness.

Brown is one of the Eagles’ best players. Only three passes went his way Sunday, and he caught just one, for just 10 yards. Still, he was happy when he took questions after the game.

It may have been the first time he had read on camera. But he said it wasn’t the first time he read that book during a game.

“It’s a book that I bring to every game,” Brown saidadding that “my teammates call it ‘The Recipe’.”

Some passages were underlined and emphasized. Viewers were naturally curious. The Eagles have many fans and the book quickly climbed the charts. Monday afternoon, it was #1 on Amazon’s bestseller list.

“As an outfielder in the Chicago Cubs organization, my sense of worth and identity revolved around my performance, mostly my batting average,” Murphy writes in the book’s introduction. “When I hit well, I went high and felt good. When I hit poorly, my shoulders sagged and my vision was dark. Life was a roller coaster of emotions. I was a slave to results and it stifled my performance. I was afraid of failure, and that fear kept setting my mind on the past and the future.

“When I started training professional and Olympic athletes, I saw this over and over again: athletes had lost their joy and passion for life as they struggled under the pressure to perform. The fear of failure consumed their lives.”

The book has helped propel athletes to higher levels of performance, even when they were filled with doubt, Murphy writes. “But far more than that,” he adds, “you will learn to live with deep contentment, joy and confidence in your everyday life.”

Brown told reporters that the book helps him refocus after every drive, “whether I score a touchdown or I drop a pass.” He will get more chances next Sunday when the Eagles host another playoff game.

A reporter for Sports Illustrated reached Murphy by phone Sunday night when his book suddenly went viral. Murphy said of Brown“It’s truly an honor to be a part of his life and to have a meaningful place in someone’s life.”

As of Monday afternoon, the book had at least one new five-star Amazon review from a user named Todd. The headline on the review said “Go Birds.” The full text of the review said: “AJ Brown recommended this book so I’m looking forward to reading this. Fly Eagles Fly.”

At least 1,044 people found Todd’s review helpful.