Rose, my NJ friend sent me this:
I have never stayed at any of them, but there are plenty of reasonable hotels around Giants Stadium. Anything on Rt. 3 in Seacaucus would probably be a good choice and they would only be a 5-10 minute taxi ride to East Rutherford.
homewoodsuites1.hilton.com/
Not sure if your friend is on a super tight budget, but Hilton Homewood Suites is always a great value IMO :-)