The Washington Commanders continued their recent hot stretch in Week 11 when they easily beat the Houston Texans by a score of 23-10. With their latest win, the Commanders pushed their record over .500, and at 6-5, they may have a real shot at making a playoff push over the next few weeks. Of course, the Commanders latest win has spawned a ton of overreactions that will give fans false beliefs regarding the team.

Washington has now won five of their last six games to overcome a 1-4 start to the season and reemerge as a playoff contender. The Commanders haven't had the toughest slate of games during this stretch, but beating teams such as the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, and Indianapolis Colts isn't exactly easy. And of course, the Commanders handed the Philadelphia Eagles their first loss of the season.

There are a lot of reasons to feel good about the Commanders right now, but many fans are going to overreact to their recent hot streak. With that in mind, let's take a look at the three biggest overreactions that have flared up as a result of Washington's Week 11 win over Houston.

1. Taylor Heinicke can lead the Commanders to the playoffs

Taylor Heinicke filling in for Carson Wentz under center has coincided with the Commanders stretch of winning. Wentz led the Commanders to their second win of the season over the Bears, but he fractured a finger in the process, and was forced to miss time. Heinicke has filled in and led Washington to wins in four of their last five games, and he will continue to start even though Wentz is now healthy.

For that reason, many folks believe that Heinicke has what it takes to lead Washington to the playoffs now that he has led the Commanders to a record above .500, but that likely isn't true. If the season ended today, the Commanders would be the eight seed in the NFC, just missing the playoffs. But there are a couple of things working against their quest to move up in the playoff picture over the next few weeks.

First, the Commanders have virtually no margin for error considering they play in the NFC East, with all four teams having records above .500 currently. Four of their final six games come against teams with records above .500 as well, and while having their bye week in Week 14 helps, that allows other teams to build up their leads over the Commanders. Heinicke has been OK under center, but Washington isn't dominating teams, and it seems likely they will regress to the mean over their final six games.

2. The Commanders defense doesn't even need Chase Young

Commanders star pass rusher Chase Young was supposed to be activated to the 53-man roster ahead of this game, but he never was. Young was eventually activated on Monday afternoon, but does it really even matter at this point? The Commanders defense (particularly their front seven) has been electric this season without Young, so who even cares that he's returning?

Of course, that's flawed logic, but it is worth noting that the Commanders have been doing a great job holding down the fort without Young. Washington has racked up 29 total sacks on the season, with Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, and Montez Sweat all recording at least six sacks so far this season. They have a strong pass rush even without Young.

You can never have enough good players on the field, though, and adding Young should allow the defensive front to improve even more. He struggled when he played in 2021, and will likely need some time to shake off the rust, but he was electric when he won Defensive Rookie of the Year back in 2020, and if he can eventually play like he did then, the Commanders will have an even more dangerous defense.

3. The Commanders should reinstate Antonio Gibson as the lead running back

Washington's running back situation has been weird all season long. Antonio Gibson seemed set to lose his hold of the lead role during training camp to Brian Robinson, but Robinson was forced to go on the injured reserve to start the season after he was shot twice in the leg in an armed robbery attempt. Both guys are playing now, though, but no one can really tell if one guy is the lead over the other.

Neither guy has been particularly effective on the ground, with Gibson averaging just 3.7 yards per carry and Robinson averaging 3.4, but Gibson offers much more as a pass-catcher than Robinson, which is particularly important now that J.D. McKissic is out for the rest of the season. It seems to make sense to just give Gibson the lead role the rest of the season, wouldn't it?

Gibson may be more effective, but the Commanders' wacky running back deployment is working as is, so there's no sense in changing things. Gibson and Robinson complement each other well, and using them both forces opposing defenses to stay on their toes. It hasn't exactly been conventional, but it's worked for Washington, and there's really no reason to change it at this point.