Saltes initially focused on playing basketball and did not play football until his junior year of high school.[2] After starting football, he received offers from schools such as San Diego State, Texas Tech, and Iowa State. Ultimately, he committed to playing college footballatNew Mexico in 2016.
After redshirting his true freshman season, Saltes transitioned from the defensive line to the offensive line and earned the starting right tackle job.[3] He was named an honorable mention to the All-Mountain West team in 2019 as a redshirt junior, and was selected to the All-Mountain West third-team by Pro Football Focus.[4][5]
In his redshirt senior season, Saltes was recognized for his community service work, receiving the Wuerffel Trophy, and serving as team captain of the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.[1][6]
Saltes went undrafted in the 2021 NFL Draft, but signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent.[7][8][9] He was waived/injured on August 9, 2021, and placed on injured reserve, and released on October 25.
Saltes was selected with the fourth pick of the sixth round by the Michigan Panthers on February 22, 2022, during the 2022 USFL draft.[10] He was added to the inactive roster on May 5, 2022,[11] with an illness.[12] He was moved to the active roster on May 11.[13]
The Arlington Renegades selected Saltes in the first round of the 2023 XFL Supplemental Draft on January 1, 2023.[14] He was placed on the reserve list by the team on February 24, 2023, and activated on April 25.[15] He re-signed with the team on January 29, 2024.[16] He was released on March 10, 2024.[17]
Saltes lived on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota before leaving the reservation with his mother when she got into medical school, eventually settling in New Mexico.[19] He still returns to Pine Ridge every summer to mentor children on the reservation, as well as bring awareness to suicides among Native Americans in the United States.[20]
