Members having some harmless fun this week in the Hart Senate Office Building ran afoul of the fun police, aka the Senate Rules Committee, for showing too much team spirit in the runup to Super Bowl XLVI.

It all started Monday when staffers for Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) decided to revel in the New England Patriots’ conference-clinching weekend win and spelled out their regional pride on their office windows.

The pro-AFC display spurred a retaliatory strike from across the way, with aides to Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) posting well wishes for the opposing team, the “N.J.” Giants — a little creative redistricting on the part of Team Menendez — in the windows directly opposite Team Shaheen.

Shaheen’s display would eventually grow to feature jerseys celebrating Pats running back and name-hog BenJarvus Green-Ellis and receiver Wes Welker.

That’s when Senate Rules threw a flag.

The arbiters of Congressional decorum emailed both offices to remind them about internal policies prohibiting unseemly public displays. So the signs came down.

But the Shaheen folks, at least, reserve the right to keep the sports feud alive with — wait for it— a food bet. (Eat that, Rules.)