But if the effect of RapGenius's hosting of lyrics led to them being the first results for all searches of lyrics, whether the lyrics were significantly transformed or not, it could be argued that they are directly profiting from unfair use of those lyrics. Else, what would stop any site from copying and republishing any material wholesale and claiming that users come to the site to comment via Disqus?
Yes. Note that direct or indirect is not in the language of the guidelines. copyright.gov says:
"Purpose and character of the use, including whether the use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes: Courts look at how the party claiming fair use is using the copyrighted work, and are more likely to find that nonprofit educational and noncommercial uses are fair. "
