The Toon won 2-0 thanks to goals from Bruno Guimaraes and Malick Thiaw.
"It was a very good performance from him again," Howe said.
"On the ball he was very composed and you have sort to come to expect that with him. But the defensive performance I really tip my hat to him. It is so difficult to play that position when you haven't played there through your career.
"Tactically we asked something different from him today and he takes everything in his stride and does it really well.
"I don't know if anyone is undroppable. Every game I will make an independent decision and we have to remember Lewy's age and manage his body. But what he has done is show he can play that role and that is a great thing for his career, whether that is here or with the national team.
"He has more strings to his bow and it will help him when he goes back into midfield. Being a defender is a total different mindset and he will be a totally different player when he goes back.
"It is important for Lewy to identify himself still as a midfielder who is doing an unbelievable job for the team at right-back. This is giving him a way to play games and it is benefitting the team currently.
"The team has benefitted from his composure and his defensive performances have been spot on. We have players coming back from injury who can add a lot in that position so I will make a decision based on the next game. It is a lovely problem to have."