The 2023 NFL Draft is done, and many of the free-agent signings have occurred. Let's reassess which five teams have built the best defenses at this point in the offseason.

Top 5 NFL Defenses After 2023 Draft

5. Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins won the Vic Fangio sweepstakes. I'm sure every coach had Vic Fangio on their list of coveted defensive coordinator candidates. The Dolphins landed him, and that's huge for them because they were 18th last year in total defense and 24th in points allowed. The defense didn't generate many turnovers — only eight interceptions and six fumble recoveries — so coach Mike McDaniel made a change.

Vic's resume speaks for itself; he has 20-plus years as a coordinator, and there's nothing he hasn't seen or done. He's a great teacher and develops players.

Then, they went out and acquired cornerback Jalen Ramsey to play opposite Xavien Howard. They got arguably one of the best, if not the best, cover corners right now in the NFL to pair with a four-time Pro Bowl pick.

They didn't have to address a lot of needs in the draft because this defense has talent at all three levels. They have interior defensive lineman Christian Wilkins, who is a game wrecker. They have outside linebacker Bradley Chubb, who was with Vic at Denver, and Jaelen Phillips on the other side, and they signed inside linebacker David Long Jr in free agency.

>>READ: Dolphins Pick-By-Pick Draft Grades 

Hiring Renaldo Hill, who was the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Chargers, as defensive backs coach was another key acquisition. I coached Renaldo back in the day in Oakland, and he is a rising star. It won't be long before he has a chance to be a head coach. He's been with Vic and knows Vic's system, which is a huge advantage.

The system is a player's system. Vic will give them the structure, but there's enough flexibility in the defense with those calls to allow players to play fast and free. It's not complicated for his team, but it is for opponents. Vic allows his guys a lot of freedom to move around in pre-snap disguises so they can play to their strengths and not be bogged down by a bunch of checks.

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4. Dallas Cowboys

It was huge for coach Mike McCarthy and the Dallas Cowboys to keep defensive coordinator Dan Quinn for a third year. When he was hired some of the Cowboys' statistics, like total defense, weren't bad, but takeaways and scoring defense needed to get better.  They improved in 2021. Last year, they finished 12th overall. They were fifth in points allowed (20.1) and first in takeaways (33).

Total yards can be a bit misleading. The two biggest categories on defense are keeping opponents out of the end zone and turnovers. So Quinn has done an amazing job at coaching the Cowboys' defense to do those things.

Dallas made a significant acquisition by trading for cornerback Stephon Gilmore, who was with the Indianapolis Colts. So the Cowboys will have Trevon Diggs on one side and Gilmore on the other. At safety, they have Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson, who are unbelievable.

>>READ: Cowboys Pick-By-Pick Draft Grades

Micah Parsons, Dorance Armstrong and DeMarcus Lawrence are on the line. The Cowboys have a lot of game-wreckers on their defense. They play fast, they play hard and can take the ball away.

Run defense was the one area they struggled with. So they drafted Michigan IDL Mazi Smith, a huge mammoth of a man at 6-foot-3, 325 pounds, in the first round to anchor the interior of that defensive line. He's a run-stopper. He's a first- and second-down player who's going to command double teams, whether he's lined up on the center or he's playing a 3-technique or a 2-technique lined up on a guard.

He's going to knock those guys back. He's going to command double teams, and he'll hold the point. He reminds me of Dontari Poe of the Kansas City Chiefs or Haloti Ngata, whom I coached in Baltimore. If you didn't double them, they were going to make plays from B gap to B gap.

So expect big things in Year 3 of Quinn's defense in Dallas.

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3. New York Jets

The New York Jets finished fourth overall in points allowed (18.6) and 10th in sacks, but they didn't have the takeaways. Their 16 takeaways, which included 12 interceptions, were the fourth fewest in the league.

There's a lot of buzz about the trade for future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers, but the Jets have a fantastic defense. Adding a piece like Rodgers could do a lot for defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich.

They have defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and his brother, linebacker Quincy Williams. They also have linebacker C.J. Mosley coming back to anchor the middle of the defense.

I love how they built this defense. They have a lot of speed, and they can get after the quarterback. They can cover with corners D.J. Reed and Sauce Gardner. Then they drafted Will McDonald, Iowa State's all-time sack leader, to give them another threat coming off the edge.

>>READ: Jets Pick-By-Pick Draft Grades

This is Year 3 of Robert Saleh as coach, so they'll have continuity and communication. Now you've got a top-five defense and hope with a new quarterback. That does a lot for a team's morale. Look at what happened when Tom Brady went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and when Matthew Stafford went to the Los Angeles Rams.

Both won it all. The Jets are going to get the best out of everybody because of that trade and the talent they already had.

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2. Philadelphia Eagles

Considering how many players on the Philadelphia Eagles defense were expected to leave via free agency, they're in decent shape.

Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave was a big loss, and they lost both safeties. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson signed with the Detroit Lions and Marcus Epps went to the Las Vegas Raiders. Gardner-Johnson is a buzzsaw. He was the communicator back there, the conduit to the middle and front of that defense.

But GM Howie Roseman has done a phenomenal job of drafting, finding free agents and re-signing their own players. He got IDL Fletcher Cox and DE Brandon Graham to re-sign. He got cornerback James Bradberry to re-sign, and they extended Darius Slay, keeping him after he basically had said goodbye to Philadelphia on social media.

The key thing for the Eagles is they lost both coordinators. Offensive coordinator Shane Steichen became the Colts' coach, and defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon got the Arizona job. So there is going to be a transition there. Fangio was a consultant for them, and he went to Miami.

Now they have Sean Desai, who coordinated in Chicago and was associate head coach in Seattle last season. He's a rising star in the business. There are big shoes to fill, but Sean is more than capable. He's a bright guy and knows defenses inside and out. He's young, but he's mature beyond his years. It's just a question of how quickly can they play his system and whether he will keep any terminology.

>>READ: Eagles Pick-By-Pick Draft Grades

The Eagles also continued to draft talented players from Georgia. Last year, they took defensive tackle Jordan Davis and linebacker Nakobe Dean. This year, they moved up to pick Jalen Carter, who gave some teams pause because of the tragic off-field incident he was involved in. On the field, he's unblockable.

Then they added a fast edge rusher in Nolan Smith later in the first round. He is a lot like All-Pro Haason Reddick. Smith has a great motor, he runs a 4.4-second 40, and he's got great bend. They also took Kelee Ringo, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound corner, who ran a 4.39. He gets to go sit behind Slay and Bradberry and learn from them. It's the rich getting richer.

They also drafted Illinois safety Sydney Brown, who brings great football IQ and great football character. He's a lightning rod and a great communicator. He's a plug-and-play type players because he also has toughness, range and can take the ball away.

Other than some time to transition early in the season to a new coordinator, it could come together for the Eagles. There is plenty of talent to work with in Philadelphia.

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1. San Francisco 49ers

It's hard to top a San Francisco 49ers defense that was No. 1 in yards allowed (300.6) and No. 1 in points allowed (16.3) last season. It was second in takeaways with 30 and 14th in sacks.

They have defensive linemen Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead and Drake Jackson, linebackers Dre Greenlaw and Fred Warner and safety Tashaun Gipson. Fellow safety Talanoa Hufanga is an electric player. They lost Jimmie Ward, but they have Charvaruis Ward on the corner and Deommodore Lenoir opposite him. This defense is stacked, and then you add Hargrave, who came over from Philadelphia as a free agent signing, to the mix.

>>READ: San Francisco 49ers Pick-By-Pick Draft Grades

The biggest thing for the 49ers is going to be the transition at defensive coordinator from DeMeco Ryans, who did an amazing job before getting his shot to coach the Houston Texans, to Steve Wilks, who did a phenomenal job in Carolina as the interim head coach. Steve's a great coach, a great teacher and a great communicator.

There's going to be a lot of similarity in what he's done, the coverages he likes and the fronts he likes. He'll put those guys in the best position possible to sustain this level of play because they can cover and they can get after the quarterback. They've got speed at all three levels and Pro Bowl players at all three levels.

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Chuck Pagano is a former NFL head coach and assistant. He is best known for his tenure with the Indianapolis Colts where he won two straight AFC North titles.