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The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Minnesota Vikings 27-9 and will face the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round. Nick Wright, Chris Broussard and Kevin Wildes ask if the Rams can beat the Eagles.
Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni came to the defense of wide receiver AJ Brown after he was criticized for reading a book on the sidelines during Sunday’s playoff game.
Brown was seen reading “Inner Excellence” by Jim Murphy and explained after the game that he always reads the book to help his mental focus. Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers was just the first time the cameras caught him doing it.
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Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni leaves the field after an NFL playoff football game against the Green Bay Packers, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Sirianni called out the criticism in an interview on Sports Radio 94 WIP.
“I definitely agree with that,” he said Tuesday. “The crazy thing is, he’s been reading this book on the sidelines for a long time. It just so happened that a camera saw it this week. Some guys pray in between, some guys mediate between the two . AJ reads between the two.
“Whatever these guys need to do to get their minds in a place where they can play with a lot of detail and a lot of effort, I fully encourage them to do it. I love AJ. He’s a really good teammate. J I saw Jahan Dotson say something while defending AJ and I thought it was great too. Another example of our teammates defending themselves.
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown, #11, during warmups against the Dallas Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on December 29, 2024. (Eric Hartline-Imagn Images)
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“We don’t do any research and jump to the conclusion, ‘Oh, he must be unhappy.’ To me that’s lazy. Everyone needs to understand why they’re doing this before they pass judgment on this man. Because the man, AJ Brown, is a great, great person. The man AJ Brown is the best. receiver – and I will say it without hesitation: the best receiver this city has ever seen… It’s hard for me to watch people pick on him without doing the proper research to find out who this man is and. what he does in the first place.
Brown’s reading escapade helped the book rise to the top of Amazon’s bestseller list overnight. All this on top of the victory against the Packers.
The Eagles could probably use a little more Brown on the field. He had a 10-yard catch in the game. He hasn’t had more than five catches since Dec. 22.
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown, #11, celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first quarter against the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland on December 22, 2024. (Peter Casey-Imagn Images)
Philadelphia will host the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional game on Sunday.
