[ExTexan]

Others are saying there is nothing you can keep track of with numbers about defense

I often lean far to the side of relying on subjectivity but I have so often seen decisions made on complete sets of data that do not correlate with the results of the decision.

There may be something you can keep track of that would correlate to the effectiveness of a particular robot but it would be far too complex and there is not enough input for it to be significant, IMHO.

Assume the case of the great defensive robot, fast, durable, good traction and great driving team. They may bang around a single offensive robot with 3 balls in the zone, keep them from scoring, yet leave them and race to the other side to stop a midfield shooter who is lining up a shot. Meanwhile the offensive robot can't even push the balls in unprotected in the time they were gone. Yet if that single offensive robot was a good scorer, maybe they don't race to block the single midfield shot. How can that excellent coaching decision be ranked?

Too many variables in the game play and quality of robots in an average game. I agree that a person or small group should become qualified to make subjective decisions on defensive capabilities.