Palmer struck in victory over Newcastle in the Premier League on the weekend.
Howe said, "It's a difficult question to answer, I thought he played really well. You can see he's playing really well. We didn't do enough to stop him in transitions. He set up the first goal in that fashion, scored the second goal in that fashion. We've learned from that.
"We will pass that on to the players and aim to do better. As a team, we will aim to collectively do better. The last 60 minutes, we defended a lot more securely, albeit we conceded a second."
On facing Chelsea for a second time in three days, he added: "We're still digesting Sunday's game. In football, you very quickly turn your attention onto the next game. Possibly a different team, possibly a different opponent, so we need to be ready for the match."
On Manchester United sacking Erik ten Hag, Howe also said: "I think it is always sadness when a manager loses his job, you always have empathy. Every club is different.
"A job at the very highest level never gets easier. I feel for him."