Last offseason, Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Leonard Williams took on all 1,000-plus pages of Leo Tolstoy's classic novel "War and Peace." He has a much quicker read this summer.
Given to him by Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde, "Chop Wood Carry Water" is a motivational fable about a young boy who trains in Japan to be a samurai archer. The book's prevailing theme is about mastering a process and not fixating on end goals, something Seattle coach Mike Macdonald often preaches to his team.
In every chapter, the boy's sensei teaches him a lesson, one being about a renowned homebuilder in Tokyo who is famous for his work. At the behest of the homebuilder's boss, he reluctantly agrees to put off retirement for one last build. He's told that it's a special home for a special client. But with his heart not in it, the builder cuts corners -- only to learn once he's finished that he was building his own home: It was a retirement gift from his company.
The lesson is applicable to the 32-year-old Williams and the other players on Seattle's defensive line who are also reading the book: Jarran Reed (33), DeMarcus Lawrence (34) and Uchenna Nwosu (29) -- accomplished veterans who are in the second half of their careers and are coming off their Super Bowl LX victory over the New England Patriots.
"It's kind of a representation that he wanted to talk to me and some of the older guys on the team, that even though we've had great careers, we've got respect around the league and stuff like that, how do we really want to keep finishing our legacy?" Williams said.
The Seahawks' defensive linemen are far from the only players with books on their summer reading lists. For some players, the break between June minicamp and the start of training camp in late July will mark the last focused time they have to read (beyond their playbooks) before the grind of the 2026 season starts.
Next on Washington Commanders offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr'.s list is "Atomic Habits" by James Clear. Conerly got the book from Commanders general manager Adam Peters, who gave it to him after he was selected at No. 29 in the 2025 draft.