Chris Long donating quarter of 2018 salary to promote youth literacy

Chris Long continues to be one of the most generous players in the NFL.

The Philadelphia Eagles defensive end is pledging to donate a quarter of his 2018 salary to help promote youth literacy, a year after also giving away his entire $1 million paycheck to benefit educational charities.

"Kids don't have a choice. Kids don't pick their parents, they don't pick their economic background, they don't pick the neighborhood they grew up in, they don't pick any of the factors that can hold them back, they don't pick their school system," Long said, according to Tim McManus of ESPN. "So (investing in them), it just feels like you're doing something productive. ... I just feel like this is something where you're going to see results."

Long's donation will help to launch the First Quarter for Literacy drive, with assistance from the United Way and Philadelphia's Read By Fourth campaign. The goal is to give underprivileged children greater access to books. Chris and Megan Long will distribute 25,000-plus books to children in Philadelphia.

"I hope that it changes parents' perspectives on how important it is, and how much they should cherish their time with their kids at night, reading 20 minutes a day, and the books that they have," Long said. "It's changed things for me."

The 33-year-old pass-rusher's 2018 base salary is $2.5 million. His donation will be $400,000 after taxes.

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