[2] He made his debut in 1983 with Essendon;[1] however, it was during the 1984 VFL season that he established himself as the league's leading full-forward, kicking 63 goals in 13 games.
[4] Essendon's leading ruckman at the time was the illustrious Simon Madden, which allowed Bombers coach Kevin Sheedy the luxury of playing the accurate kicking "Fish" up forward.
His effectiveness in the position was due to his athleticism and ability to win one-on-one marking contests, using his superior height and mobility.
[4] Salmon endured further minor complications with his knee injury and numerous soft tissue injuries over the next few years and was never allowed to settle in a specific on-field role; despite this, he played a vital role for the team, becoming vice-captain in 1992 and culminating in leading the Bombers' season goalkicking tally on seven occasions as well as playing in Essendon's 1993 premiership, where he kicked 5 goals to help Essendon to a 44-point win over Carlton in the Grand Final in front of 96,862 fans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
[4] He was selected in Kevin Sheedy's best team of his 27 years as coach and at number 26 in the 'Champions of Essendon',[citation needed] which was a list of the best of the past century who wore the red and black, missing the top-25 cutoff by a single position.
[4] At the conclusion of the 1995 season, Salmon moved to Hawthorn, where he played from 1996–2000, and revived his career by winning the Best and Fairest in 1996 and '97 as well as the Most Consistent Award in '98.
[19] He also worked as a coach of the First XVIII Football team at Carey Baptist Grammar School; he retired from that position in 2008 to spend more time with his family and concentrate on business interests.
[citation needed] In August 2022, Salmon defeated former Essendon teammate Jason Johnson on the "Lou's Handball" segment of The Sunday Footy Show with a score of 76–74.