AJ Brown was caught reading a book during a game, prompting his coach to criticize his work ethic.

Nick Sirianni defended A.J. Brown against criticism for reading a book on the sideline during Sunday's playoff game.

Jim Murphy's "Inner Excellence" was the book that Brown was seen reading on Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers, and he revealed after the game that he always reads it to improve his mental focus.

Sirianni called out the critics in an interview on Sports Radio 94 WIP.

A.J. reads in between," he said Tuesday. "The crazy thing is, he's been reading this book on the sideline for a long time. It just so happened a camera saw it this week. Some guys pray in between, some guys meditate in between. A.J. reads in between.

I fully support these guys in doing whatever it takes for them to play with great detail and effort. A.J. is an exceptional teammate, and I admire his dedication to the team. I was impressed by Jahan Dotson's defense of A.J., and it's a testament to the strong bond between our teammates.

"It's lazy to jump to a conclusion about A.J. Brown without doing proper research on him. A.J. Brown is a great person and the best receiver this city has ever seen. It's hard for me to watch when people criticize him without knowing who he is and what he's doing."

The Packers' loss and Brown's reading escapade propelled the book to the top of Amazon's bestsellers list.

Since Dec. 22, Brown has not had more than five catches, and he had only one catch for 10 yards in the game.

On Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams will face off against Philadelphia in the divisional round game.

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