Ken,
I believe that the F22 was initially design brief was for a multi-role fighter / attack aircraft. Many of the features that would have helped it achieve a better A to G role were deleted from the final spec.
The Raptor had an F/A-22 designation for about two years, maybe less. And that was quite late in the development cycle when Congress was looking at cutting off its funding because it no longer had an enemy to fight when the MiG 1.44 project died. Adding ground attack (late in the game) was a way to justify its continued funding. And dropping a pre-programed SDB on an ISIS command compound isn't much of an achievement, but you're right, it was an air to ground mission.