Editors note: A group of ASN staffers have created a 23-man roster for the January U.S. national team camp. Here is the 17th of 23 articles tied to every name on our list.

IF YOU JUST LOOK at his World Cup statistics from Brazil—four games played, three games started, two assists—you might be inclined to believe that Graham Zusi had a great tournament. When you see that his club, Sporting Kansas City, named Zusi its 2014 co-MVP, you might think that the midfielder enjoyed a great MLS campaign and is on the upswing of his career.

But it certainly doesn't feel that way.

Despite a solid corner kick that John Brooks nodded home to defeat Ghana and a reaction cross that Clint Dempsey ushered into the back of net against Portugal, Zusi was just so-so on soccer's biggest stage. He seemed overmatched and largely irrelevant against both Germany and Belgium—although you could say the same about many American players.

As much as Zusi impressed when he first stepped onto the national stage, he has underwhelmed in recent months. Looking ahead to 2018, it's not entirely clear where, or if, he fits in.

He doesn't have the sort of speed that can unlock defenses down the wing. He's five-foot-ten and 160 pounds—average. His technical acumen is certainly sufficient for Major League Soccer and CONCACAF but it will never dazzle top competition. He works as hard as anyone but defending isn't really his thing.

And yeah, he turned 28 in August—which means he will be within shouting distance of 32 when the 2018 World Cup winds to a close.

The ASN 100 is anything but scientific, but look at the ranking tracker at right: Zusi's standing within the United States player pool has clearly failed the eyeball test. Our nine panelists have voted the former University of Maryland star all the way down to the No. 20 spot in our ranking system; in September 2013 he was considered the sixth best American player.

What does all of this mean? I'm not entirely sure. But it feels like Zusi has plateaued and is in danger of falling further down the depth chart.

A strong showing in January could change all of that, of course, and I wouldn't be shocked if he showed up in camp rested and motivated and ready to show U.S. soccer supporters more of what made them so excited about Zusi two-and-a-half years ago.

He had better do so—there are plenty of talented people who would love to take his job.

ASN's January roster so far

1. Tesho Akindele
2. Lee Nguyen
3. Robbie Rogers
4. Matt Besler
5. Gyasi Zardes
6. Bill Hamid
7. Matt Hedges
8. Luis Gil
9. Steve Clark
10. Charlie Davies
11. Perry Kitchen
12. Andrew Farrell
13. Miguel Ibarra
14. Jermaine Jones
15. Clint Dempsey
16. Kelyn Rowe
17. Graham Zusi

Agree? Disagree? Tell us in the Comments section below.

John Godfrey is the founder and editor in chief of American Soccer Now.