I've also in segments tried to use other people as distractions or use myself as one and try to get the partner to kill the enemy. For the most part this doesn't work because the enemies will ignore other characters and just focus on attacking the player. The partner AI also isn't smart enough to dispatch an enemy unless it's a scripted segment. The partner characters are mostly just decoration. Even when they're with you the truth is you're really by yourself and can't count on them for much.
I did hope they’d improve on this smh