Couple points:
Mayer sounded ok when he played with Phil a little while back. He was, however, playing third fiddle much of the time.
Otiel is great. Not sure how he'll do though. Those are some big nerdy shoes to fill.
That said, after watching the Billy with Weir set followed by Phil with Carlos from Lockn, Phil is the guy that pushes the X-factor far more than The Other Guys (with the exception of Mickey).