Former New York Giants running back Orleans Darkwa hasn't played an NFL game in three years, but with 2020 free agency fast approaching, the 28-year-old veteran is in touch with teams about a return to the league.
A source with knowledge of the situation tells CBS Sports that Darkwa's camp recently informed teams the RB is fully healthy and medically cleared following a 2018 Achilles injury. There is confidence in league circles, meanwhile, that the one-time Giants standout will at least be in a training camp this summer, in part because he's likely to cost a lot less than similarly experienced backup options set to hit the market at a time when many executives are increasingly wary of spending big at the position.
The Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots and Houston Texans are believed to be potential landing spots for the backup, but a league source also wouldn't rule out Darkwa returning to the Giants.
New York is expected to be in the market for depth behind Saquon Barkley, who missed three games in 2019, and has already been linked to names like Dion Lewis in an anticipated hunt for help.
Darkwa, of course, is perhaps best known for his 2017 breakout in New York, where he replaced Paul Perkins to total 867 yards and five touchdowns in 11 starts, capped by a 154-yard rushing performance in the Giants' season finale.
Hoping to score a larger role and salary after four years in blue, Darkwa turned down offers from New York and the rival Washington Redskins in between workouts for the Bills, Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars in 2018. But then his Achilles injury, sustained during a training session, sent him "underground" while he rehabilitated, as ESPN reported a year later.
The RB resurfaced in July 2019 with a workout for the Cleveland Browns and passed his physical, per a source, though Cleveland ultimately opted for Kareem Hunt to serve as Nick Chubb's backup.
