L2TP IPSec without public IP

I have a Mikrotik that was deployed as a router plugged into a modem. So the Tik had a public IP.

The client brought in a Cable Modem/Gateway.
So I DMZ’d that to the Mikrotik and I can connect via winbox and pptp works.

l2tp + ipsec seems to fail right away.

Will l2tp work when the Mikrotik doesn’t have a public IP on it’s interface?

Is DMZ the only option, or can you put that cable gateway in bridge mode? If so, that would be easier, and preferable.

It would require physical changes to the network. A bunch of them to not use dmz.