You’re like the victim of the “equal opportunity employment” trick that has been played by US companies for decades.
What happens is that a manger hand-picks who he wants, often a buddy, and then posts the position within the company for several weeks in order to meet the “equal opportunity” requirement. Often the posted position is deliberately written such that the job requirements match identically with the skill set of the manager’s choice. This way, if anyone complains later on, the hiring manager can “prove” that the hand-picked guy best met the job requirements.
It’s unfair and corrupt, but it happens a lot.