Giants free agent running back Orleans Darkwa had minor surgery on Wednesday morning to remove the plate in his leg he had inserted last offseason, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. X-rays confirmed Darkwa’s initial fractured has healed in full, so he is now able to move forward without the plate that had been limiting his explosiveness. Darkwa should be good to go in four weeks, Rapoport hears. 
Darkwa had several offers in free agency, per Rapoport (on Twitter), but did not find any deals to his liking. Apparently, those clubs are encouraged by his decision to have the plate taken out. Darkwa’s market could ramp up in the next few weeks, particularly since the signing of unrestricted free agents no longer count against the 2019 compensatory draft pick formula at this stage of the offseason.
Darkwa hasn’t drawn a ton of interest in free agency, though he did visit the Patriots in April. The Giants reportedly had some level of interest in re-signing him, but they’ve since drafted Penn State standout Saquon Barkley with the No. 2 overall pick and signed veteran Jonathan Stewart . The crosstown Jets were also eyeing Darkwa at one point, but signed Isaiah Crowell and Thomas Rawls.
Darkwa had the best year of his NFL career in 2017 with career-highs in starts (11), rushes (171), yards (751), and touchdowns (five). The 26-year-old managed 4.4 yards per carry, and also added 19 receptions for 116 yards in the passing game. Overall, Darkwa was roughly a league-average running back, as he finished 22nd among 45 qualifiers in DVOA, Football Outsiders’ efficiency metric.
Sorry to see him go from Giants. Was a hard runner who seemed to always put forth his best effort. Any team that signs him will get a punishing back who will work hard and produce.