"It's a simple question on a valid subject -- a ''hot topic'' as linebacker Brian Urlacher called it: Is this Bears' defense better than the 2006 defense that went to the Super Bowl?

Too hot for Lovie Smith, who feigned memory loss Thursday when asked a question that barely hinted at a 2006 vs. 2010 comparison.

That's Lovie's default mode of avoiding a subject that might require him to ''step out'' with some candor -- like acknowledging that Julius Peppers is a better defensive end than Adewale Ogunleye. But 2006 vs. 2010 is not an idle debate. It highlights a key difference that bodes well for the 2010 Bears: At this point of the season, the 2006 defense was getting worse; the 2010 defense is getting better.

The two defenses might match up well statistically and man-for-man. But at this point of the 2006 season, the Bears' defense was heading downhill. The litany of injuries and distractions was getting longer by the day: "