Could be. Not sure if that would make a difference in a low speed OpAmp (1MHz unity gain bandwidth), unfortunately the datasheet I found for LMT2902 has no AC specs. DC specs are identical between LMT and LM versions.
I wonder how much extra die area is needed to add ESD protection diodes. Maybe they just wanted to fit more chips on a wafer, only to realize later that the ESD resilience is preferred over a slightly cheaper IC.