49ers preseason schedule 2015: Denver Broncos should provide significant Week 3 test

The NFL announced the 2015 preseason schedule, and the San Francisco 49ers get three repeat opponents. Their one new opponent this year is the Dallas Cowboys, a team they faced last year in the regular season opener. This marks the 15th preseason matchup between the long-time rivals, with the last taking place in 2009.

The 49ers face the San Diego Chargers for the 29th consecutive year. They normally alternate home and away, but this is the second straight season the 49ers will host the game. The 49ers face the Houston Texans for the fourth time overall, and the Denver Broncos for the 37th time overall.

Here is the full schedule of games. The NFL will announce the specific dates, but for now we at least know the weeks. None of the games is nationally televised, but they will all be be broadcast locally on KPIX Channel 5. You can also stream them on NFL.com's Preseason Live.

Week 1: @ Houston Texans (August 13-17)
Week 2: vs. Dallas Cowboys (August 20-24)
Week 3: @ Denver Broncos (August 27-30)
Week 4: vs. San Diego (September 3-4)

The Week 3 matchup against the Denver Broncos provides the most interesting matchup. The third game of the preseason schedule is viewed by most as the "dress rehearsal" game. We usually will see starters get their most significant action of the preseason in that game.

We know the Broncos offense is strong, but Football Outsiders ranked their defense No. 4 in the league. Given the 49ers notable turnover on both sides of the ball, facing a team like the Broncos in Week 3 is a good thing. We can't draw huge conclusions from preseason action, but we can at least get some ideas about what the team is doing. Considering how the last matchup went between these two, some improvement would be welcome.