Previewing the Lions' next opponent: The Denver Broncos

The Detroit Lions hope to turn around their fortune this week by welcoming the Denver Broncos to town for the 2015 home opener on Sunday night. Here's a look at how the Broncos have performed so far:

Denver Broncos (2-0)

Schedule so far:

Week 1 - vs. Ravens - won, 19-13

Week 2 - at Chiefs - won, 31-24

Reason for optimism

Despite a 2-0 record, Broncos fans have been a bit worried about their teams' performance. Specifically, Denver's offense is not the dominant force that many expected it to be. Peyton Manning has looked merely pedestrian so far in 2015. Much of the reason for their offensive struggles is offensive line problems. Manning has been sacked seven times already and the Broncos are averaging just 2.8 yards per carry, second-worst in the league.

Reason for pessimism

With Detroit having plenty of offensive line issues of their own, the duo of pass rushers that are Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware could send Matthew Stafford to a body bag by the end of the night. Denver's defense has been extremely good through two weeks, leading the league in passer rating allowed (45.1), passing touchdowns allowed (0) and interceptions (4). This may not be the week that the Lions figure out all of their offensive problems.

Storyline to watch

Denver is just looking for signs of life from their offense. If there's a week of resurrection for Manning, this is probably it. The Lions defense ranks in the bottom ten of nearly every statistical category.

Detroit is just looking to stop the free-fall. Almost nothing has gone right for the Lions through two weeks, and if they don't show any signs of improvement on Sunday night, the season may be essentially over before October.

Additional info

For more info on the Broncos, check out Mile High Report.