‘The Bachelorette’ rankings: Where Drew Kenney, Zak Waddell stand for Desiree Hartsock

Now that we’re down to the top 5 on “The Bachelorette,” we have something that is a bit refreshing: For the first time all season, we’re ranking all of the contenders for Desiree Hartsock’s heart in terms of how likely they are to win this season. Some of these contenders have been favorites for a rather long time; meanwhile, some of the others rose to the occasion recently, and there is one who was never really ever much of a contender at all.

We’re basing what we think of these people on the airtime that they’ve had, the edit, and what we believe their progress with Desiree Hartsock to be. For those of you who have been checking out this series for quite a while (and thank you if you’re a part of that), the #1 choice is going to feel very familiar.

5. Michael Garofola – There’s an outside chance that someone else bombs and he makes it to the hometown dates, but our desk lamp has about the same chance of winning the season that he does. He’s had little romantic airtime, outside of calling out Ben Scott on his two-on-one date. Moving on…

4. Zak Waddell – A very funny, likable guy, but we still don’t get the same level of serious passion that is there with some of the other people this season. Plus, we still imagine that Desiree will have a hard time picking a guy whose first major words to her were “will you accept these abs?” while coming out of a limousine.

3. Chris Siegfried – He had a pretty nice one-on-one date recently, but his story arc is pretty hard to read, given that it was interrupted by what happened with Bryden leaving the show. He’s just not getting much of a “winner” edit right now, but you could also argue that the same thing could be said for Catherine Giudici much of the season on “The Bachelor.”

2. Drew Kenney – Where did this side of Drew come from? He was a middle-of-the-road contender for weeks, but the passion on his one-on-one date with Desiree could not be denied. We now have this guy marked down as a serious contender to watch out for, and he may even have that all-important momentum going into the final episodes.

1. Brooks Forester – But, it’s still not enough to defeat Brooks, let alone tangle up that bushy mane of hair. The man has dominated most of the season in the same way that J.P. Rosenbaum did a few years ago on Ashley’s season, there’s just a certain air of comfort about him at all times. Desiree never looks nervous around him, not even for a second. He may not have it in the bag yet, but he’s pretty darn close.

Who is your favorite right now on “The Bachelorette,” and who do you want to see heading out in the fancy car of tears and crushed dreams at the end of Monday’s episode? If you want to check out a sneak peek for Monday that is all about Brooks and Desiree, in addition to some other show-related stories, all you have to do is click here.

Photo: ABC