Could a bad MAF mess up a cat?

 

Any engine running out of fuel trim , esp too rich, can mess up a cat. Bad Maf usually means bad trim.
But unless its new, very possible you don't have a cat, just a square tube or a mouse graveyard.

 

What do u mean by square tube or mouse graveyard?

 

Square tube=hollowed out cat
Mouse graveyard=hollowed out cat filled with charred dead mice
I just noticed you are in San Diego , so you may have a real cat under the car, but in most parts of the country these cars don't have to pass smog, so the cats get hollowed out instead of replaced. If your cat is the original, it is prob disintegrated internally which could block it up. You prob don't have the mouse problem in SoCal.

 

AHhh , nothin' like the smell of exhaust fried mouse in the springtime , smells like summer car comin' back to life for it's season