Orleans Darkwa saw more action in the normal down-and-distance flow of the game against the Lions. His first run of the contest went for 11 yards midway through the second quarter, and he didn't touch the ball again until the start of the third. It was quite similar to the opener, when he ran for 12 yards in the second quarter and didn't get another carry until late in the second half.
This might actually be the week Darkwa gets featured. Ben McAdoo has confidence in second-year back Paul Perkins, but the disparity so far has been significant: Perkins 1.9 yards per carry vs. Darwka 5.2 ypc.
"We evened out the reps and we have confidence in Paul, we have confidence in Orleans," McAdoo said. "Orleans had a couple cleaner looks in the ballgame [Monday]."
Darkwa vs. Perkins is likely one of the many personnel competitions that will be taking place this week at practice. Usually in-season practices are primarily to prepare for that week's opponent. This week there might be more internal competition than normal.
In his career, Darkwa has 318 yards on 81 carries for a 3.93 YPC. Meanwhile, Perkins has averaged 3.83 YPC in his career, but just 1.86 YPC this year. Even if Darkwa takes over "lead back" duties in the Giants' offense, it's not going to be a role that generates a lot of fantasy production since Perkins will remain somewhat involved and Shane Vereen is there to vulture most of the work on passing downs. Still, in deeper leagues, Darkwa could be added very cheaply, and who knows, maybe he begins to roll and turns into a 10- to 15-carry player.
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