Howe had to watch a thriller at St. James' Park from a hotel in isolation.
The Magpies twice had to come from behind after Ivan Toney cancelled out Jamaal Lascelles' opener for the home side.
Rico Henry put Brentford in front before the much-maligned Joelinton levelled.
Lascelles then netted at the wrong end, but Allan Saint-Maximin salvaged a point for Howe's men that does little for their bid to beat relegation as they are five points adrift of safety.
Norwich also got a bounce from a new manager as they moved off the foot of the table in Dean Smith's first match in charge thanks to a 2-1 win over Southampton.
Che Adams put the Saints in front, but Teemu Pukki and Grant Hanley lifted the Canaries to within three points of safety.
Burnley remain rooted in the bottom three after another six-goal thriller at Turf Moor ended 3-3 with Crystal Palace.
West Ham missed the chance to move into second and cut Chelsea's lead to three points as Raul Jimenez scored the only goal in a 1-0 win for Wolves at Molineux.
Liverpool can therefore go second when they host in-form Arsenal at Anfield in Saturday's late kick-off (17.30GMT).
November 20, 2021