PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Step aside, Oprah.
Philadelphia Eagles star receiver A.J. Brown could launch a book club of his own after a little sideline reading skyrocketed self-help author Jim Murphy to the hottest seller on Amazon overnight.
The Eagles wide receiver passed on the playbook and checked out an inspirational title — Brown casually ignored the action in Philadelphia's playoff game and flipped through the pages of Murphy's book, “Inner Excellence.”
The little-known book by the mental skills coach was listed No. 1 on Amazon’s best-sellers list as of Monday morning. It took the top spot on the trending list after previously being ranked 523,497th. That jump earned it another top spot on the marketplace's movers & shakers list.
It had yet to crack the top 100 for sales in 2025, however. Mel Robbins, Rebecca Yarros, Kristin Hannah and the likes still reigned supreme there.
Undoubtedly fueled by Eagles fans, “Inner Excellence” was reviewed 375 times and rated 4.7 out of 5 on Amazon. For comparison, Freida McFadden's critically acclaimed book “The Housemaid” had 431,491 reviews with a 4.5 rating.
“AJ Brown recommended this book, so I’m looking forward to reading this. Fly Eagles Fly,” one reviewer wrote on the site.
Murphy, a former minor league outfielder in the Chicago Cubs organization, told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday night that his phone started blowing up with texts once his book was checked out on an NFL playoff game.
After his career ended, Murphy became intrigued by the idea of learning how to teach baseball players how to have confidence under pressure.
“I spent five years full-time writing and researching the answer to that question,” Murphy said. “That became the book ‘Inner Excellence.’"
Brown, who had 67 catches for 1,079 yards and seven touchdown this season, described the lessons in the book as useful because football is “90% mental and 10% physical for me.”
Brown later shared a photo of the book on social media with several passages highlighted and underlined in yellow.
Brown said he was surprised his moment went viral because he says he often reads on the sideline, but added: “Y’all caught me that time.”
“If I score a touchdown or drop a pass, it’s something how I refocus,” Brown said. “I always revert back to the beginning of the book. It states if you can just have a clear mind and remember that nothing else matters, clear conscience, nothing matters negative or positive. You’re willing to take risks. It also says if you’re humble, you can’t be embarrassed.”
It must have worked. The Eagles beat the Green Bay Packers and advanced in the NFL playoffs.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Dan Gelston, The Associated Press
