No one questions Taylor Loffler’s toughness. That’s one quality about the man that’s never ever been an issue.

And so while alarm bells may go off occasionally in Bomber Nation when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers safety misses practice or a chunk of a session – as was the case Friday – no one in the football operations department is in a panic.

That’s because come game day, in this case Sunday’s annual Labour Day Classic against the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Canadian Football League’s all-star safety from last year will almost always be patrolling the middle of the Bombers air defence.

“He’s good,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea when asked about Loffler’s status for Sunday. “When you watch him and listen to him in meetings, he’s spot on. He knows what he’s doing. We talked about this even last year: He’s got a maturity about him that certainly goes beyond his years of service.

“He’s got the trust not only of the coaching staff, but of the players around him. All these guys study and are prepared. They spend the time watching the film and talking to their teammates and making sure they’re in their playbooks and in their gameplan.

“The No. 1 thing is just to make sure these guys are ready physically.”

Loffler has been through all of this before. During his college days at Boise State and then UBC, Loffler had surgeries on each of his hips, on his knee (twice) as well as surgery to repair a sports hernia.

That means taking a Tuesday or a Wednesday off during the season keeps the hard-hitting safety ready for when the ball is put on the tee for real.

“Going through what I’ve gone through, I know when certain things are hurting and how to take care of it and what to do to make it feel right for game time,” Loffler said this week. “I wish that wasn’t the case, what I’ve been through, but I guess in this sense it helps.

“It’s tough. I was getting really frustrated there for a while and there’s been a few times this year where I haven’t been able to practice. I hate seeing other people out there practising and I’m not out there.”

“It’s hard not being able to get the first team reps with everyone. You just have to watch a guy in that spot. But at the same time, if something does happen, you need a guy in there that knows what he’s doing. In that way it’s good for them to get more reps.

“It’s been an interesting year, but it’s getting to the point now where I’m starting to feel a little bit better. Hopefully I can just keep improving from here.”

As has been the custom this year, Derek Jones took a lot of the reps in practice with Loffler out. The Bombers feel comfortable with either man back there, but also crave continuity in their search to find some chemistry in the secondary.

Loffler said the defence got a sense a couple of games ago that their unit was coming together and they will undoubtedly be tested, again, by veteran Riders quarterback Kevin Glenn and his gaggle of gifted receivers.

Loffler will play a critical role in limiting the damage the Riders can do offensively: He leads the Bombers in tackles with 40 and in defensive plays with 47 – including two forced fumbles, a pair of knockdowns, two special teams tackles and a fumble recovery.

All this, it would seem, as quarterbacks have learned not to attack the middle of the Bombers secondary as often as they might have a year ago.

“I really have to work hard this year to get to the ball,” said Loffler. “It seems like teams are throwing away from me and not throwing it across the middle as much this year. It means I have to make quicker reads and get over to where the ball’s being thrown. I want to work in the second half of the season on getting some interceptions… I haven’t been able to get one this year. Yet. That’s my big thing in the second half: To be a little bit more around the ball.

“Last year being a rookie at safety, that’s a big area to cover and people were throwing over the middle. This year it seems like the middle has been tested a couple of times whereas last year it was every game.

“We’re starting to see what we can be on defence,” Loffler added. “I like where we’re at and where we can still get to in the second half.”

BOMBER REPORT – September 1, 2017

The Bombers completed their final full practice on Friday in advance of this weekend’s visit to Regina to face the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the annual Labour Day Classic.

Here are three things you should know before the team hops on a plane Saturday afternoon…

WHO GOES WHERE/FYI

WR Julian Feoli-Gudino, who has 26 receptions for 254 yards and three TDs this year – his career best totals came in 2015 with 27-266-1 – was back working with the No. 1 offence on Friday. Two of his scores have come in the last three games… Weston Dressler will return to the starting lineup, and has been the case all week, the receiver taking a knee this weekend looks to be TJ. Thorpe… Andy Mulumba, the Bombers first-round draft pick (second overall) in 2013, was released Friday by the Los Angeles Rams… The Riders, meanwhile, will not activate receiver/returner Chad Owens for Sunday… Mike O’Shea on Derek Jones, who would fill in for Taylor Loffler if he can’t go: “He’s got a high football IQ, he’s very athletic, he’s tough and he’s got a quiet confidence to him. You teach him something once and then he’ll go out there and do it. He’s a pro. Last year, he was our Pro’s Pro on special teams as voted on by the guys. They know he’s a guy you can always count on.”

HOLD TIGHT

One of the keys for the Bombers this week, as it is every week, is to win the turnover battle. The Riders have forced 11 takeaways in their two-game win streak and are tied with Winnipeg with the second-best turnover ratio at +6 (Calgary is first at +13).

“We emphasize it every single week, from the offseason, mini-camps, training camp on,” said O’Shea. “We saw how it played an important role for us in the takeaways we generated on defence and then great ball security on offence. It’s something we talk about on a daily basis.”

“Honestly, the ball is the cup and that’s what we preach all year round,” added Andrew Harris. “There’s no difference in this game. I think we’re one of the best teams in the turnover battle, too. That’s always a focus, that’s always something we want to achieve – winning the turnover battle. They’re a team that takes it away and it’s going to be keying extra on ball security and making sure we’re not making errant throws and force them into making some mistakes.”

FOR A GOOD CAUSE

The Bombers announced Friday the proceeds from this weekend’s Labour Day Classic online 50-50 raffle will be donated to the Canadian Red Cross to ‘aid their relief efforts and disaster management in First Nations communities affected by wildfires.’

The proceeds will support the work the Canadian Red Cross does in Manitoba, including aiding evacuees from Garden Hill, Wasagamack and St. Theresa Pointe First Nations who are currently displaced due to wildfires.

To purchase 50/50 tickets for this weekend’s draw, click here.