Which Guys Will Make the Sweet 16 for American Idol Season 9

We were all thrown for a bit of surprise on Tuesday night when the guys went first because of an illness to one of the girls. Less preparation time was probably not an ideal situation for some of the weaker male singers and it definitely showed. However, while some singers laid down a bomb, several others stepped up and solidified their chances of making it to the top ten.

Who is safe?

Michael Lynche started the show and put down what was probably the best performance of the night. The big man has pipes and charisma and could easily take down the entire competition. While he seemed a little strained last week, he put on a performance that stood above all others this week. He can rest easy because this performance will save him for this week and leave an impression in the future for when he has an off night.

Lee Dewyze finished the show and gave Michael a run for his money. He has great range and is probably already capable of being a front man for a band. His voice is perfect for cranking out harder rock songs or stepping back and doing a ballad. His flexibility is going to be difficult for the other contestants to deal with if he continues to progress, he should have no problems making it to the top ten and beyond.

Andrew Garcia has a beautiful voice, but he had a bad week. It is unlikely that he is going anywhere because the fans love him and even on a bad night, he was far better than some of the other singers. He is probably sweating this one out, but he is more than likely safe. Casey is in the same boat here and while his performance is weak, he will get through on his pretty boy looks. The judges have really set this up for him with their comments coming into the elimination weeks and he has a huge advantage over most of the other contestants because of this. He is probably in the lower half of talent, but he is going to push through because of other factors.

Who is in trouble?

There is little doubt that Jermaine Sellers is going to be hitting the road this week. While anything is possible, his performance was weak and he deserves to go. In his defense, he is changing the songs the way the judges tell people to do and then they come back and tell him to leave the songs alone and just sing. There is no way to hide how bad he was this week and he will be gone.

The other spot is a little tougher to call because there were so many different people that laid an egg. Aaron Kelly is the boy's version of Haley; he simply should not be in this competition. There were other better singers and he made it through because the judges wanted to give a 16-year old a chance. Now they say that he needs more time because he was not ready. The bubble contestants that should have been here are probably going nuts right now. His performance was shaky and his scales were atrocious. He is being protected by most of the judges, but Simon pretty much hit the nail on the head and I think he is in trouble.

Todrick Hall is also going to be sweating it and it is for no other reason than the fact that he is singing outside of his range right now. He needs a lot of work on vocal training and even if he does survive, he will not make it much further. The judges should just put him out of his misery. Alex Lambert should be sweating as well as his nerves just get the best of him. He looks awkward on stage and while he has a great voice, he is not performing. He looks like a frozen doll on stage. He may survive this week, but he needs to get over the fear of performing and just let loose.

John Park also needs to be worried going into Thursday's show. His performance was flat and not good at all. There is no passion whatsoever and his attitude is almost as though he thinks he is better than everyone else is. This is going to hurt him and he may not see the stage next week. Tim Urban was not great, but he should be okay. On the bright side, he seemed to have found his niche this week and could start to tear it up in weeks to come. Some of the judges seemed a bit harsh, especially after their praise of Aaron Kelly. It often makes me wonder if they are hearing the same songs that are coming through my TV.

By performances alone, Jermaine and Todrick should be gone, but John Park and Aaron Kelly have every reason to be nervous. Randy, Ellen and Kara are only going to be able to protect Aaron for so long and he will not make it much further even if he does get past this week. The stakes are moving up quickly and if some of these guys do not step it up soon, they are going to make it very easy for America to vote them off in the upcoming weeks.